


Twice Upon A Time

by hawkeye1365



Category: Twilight Series - All Media Types
Genre: Drama, F/F, Romance
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-04-26
Updated: 2019-04-24
Packaged: 2019-04-28 08:29:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 8
Words: 38,316
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14445339
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hawkeye1365/pseuds/hawkeye1365
Summary: Davina is the daughter of a strange man named Viktor Ward. He found her as a newborn baby and raised her as his own. Some years later, during her service to the Volturi, she met a man named Carlisle Cullen. She grew to love him as a brother, and together they started a family. For centuries now she's been the only one in their family to not find her mate -- aside from her nephew Edward. What will happen when they both find their mate in the same girl?





	1. Dear Viktor

**Author's Note:**

> A/N: So I know this chapter is pretty short and I apologize for that. This is just supposed to kind of introduce you to Davina and Viktor, and recap some of what happened in Twilight. This is a Femslash, so if that's not your thing, then don't read it. Fair warning.

Chapter 1: Dear Viktor

It was a seemingly average morning in Forks, Washington. The skies were full of dark clouds that threatened to drop rain at any moment, and the air was its usual shade of cold. People were dragging themselves out of bed to eat breakfast, shower, get dressed for the day, and head off to wherever it was they needed to be. The Cullen family, however, had a different morning routine.

Rather than trip over one another in the kitchen playing pass the coffee and the cornflakes, they all went about their own business, in no hurry to make it anywhere. They never slept, or ate, or did most of the things that humans did; because they were all vampires. All of them, except one.

Davina Cullen was the only member of the Cullen family that could eat and drink human food, and needed to sleep at least a few hours each night. This wasn't because she was human – at least, not entirely. There was a part of Davina that was definitely human, though she had never been entirely so.

Her mentor and adoptive father Viktor had found her as a baby and raised her as his own. From the moment he found her she smelled different from other humans – sweeter – and in raising her he found many other oddities about her physiology. Her heart beat like a hummingbird's wings. Her skin was paler than any human, but still held more color than a vampire's. The touch of her skin was hot, like that of a shifter. And though she did grow up, she did so incredibly fast – she was fully grown only seven years after her birth.

Viktor and Davina tried to research any and all myths and legends they could find on vampire children, but never found much of anything. Then again, the last time they tried was before the internet was invented. Viktor advised her never to tell anyone about her unique physiology, unless she absolutely trusted them, and she never did.

The running story had always been that she was bitten by another vampire and that Viktor had sucked the venom out of her system, thus leaving her only partly turned. Most vampires believed it and found her story fascinating – more that Viktor didn't drain her dry than her only being partly turned – but there were some, like Carlisle, that were smarter than that. Carlisle knew that such a thing was highly unlikely, if not impossible, but respected that she clearly did not wish to tell him the truth.

Davina sat at the island in the Cullen's kitchen, eating her breakfast alone. It was an odd thing for her to eat alone. She was so used to having company of some kind. When she lived with Viktor, he always found it fascinating that she could eat human food. Carlisle found it equally fascinating, but mostly just wanted to keep her company. Her nephew Edward had become her new mealtime companion in recent decades, but his attention had been diverted elsewhere of late.

Isabella Swan had come into their lives only a few months ago, and already she had taken the majority of Edward's attention. Davina held no ill will towards Bella for this; she had simply grown used to things being her and Edward against the world. Everyone else in the family had found their mate, leaving them the odd ones out, so they always stuck together. But Edward had Bella now, leaving Davina all alone.

On this morning, however, Davina welcomed the time alone. With the events of this past spring, and Edward unable to be truly alone with Bella – Davina was usually close by just in case – she'd fallen behind on a few things. It had been some time since she'd written Viktor, and her last journal entry was the morning of the baseball game.

Most people found it a bit cliché for a vampire to keep a journal. Emmett regularly made fun of her for it, when he was around. But for as long as she could remember Viktor tried telling her, "There's nothing wrong with keeping a personal log of one's life and inner thoughts." It just took her a few decades to come around to the idea.

She sat perfectly straight – by human standards – legs crossed, and sipped her coffee. She didn't need the pick-me-up, but she enjoyed the taste. Taking a deep breath, she pushed her breakfast away, and began writing.

" _My Dearest Viktor,_

_My apologies for the extended silence between letters – though if you've decided to travel again, I doubt you will have noticed. Things in this part of the world became rather complex for a time. This past spring, especially._

_Do you remember me telling you about that blood singer that Edward was trying to court? Remember how I said she was clumsy? Well, she must be exceedingly unlucky as well, because she was nearly killed this past spring, and it wasn't by Edward."_

A strand of strawberry blonde hair fell into her view, and she tucked it away behind her ear.

_"It all started out as a normal baseball game – Jasper has nothing on your batting skills, by the way – until the nomads showed up. They were only a small group of three, and only interested in joining the game; but Bella was out there, and two of the three refused to accept that she was off limits food wise._

_As I'm sure you've guessed by now, things did not end as peacefully as my brother would have liked them to – ever the optimist. Carlisle invited them to our home, but along the way two of them broke off from the group. I'm not sure why they were unconcerned with me seeing them do it – I was bringing up the rear. Perhaps they thought I would tell Carlisle, who would simply say they were free to go. Or perhaps they knew I was already suspicious of them and would follow, but didn't care because they were two against my being one. Either way, I knew where they were going: after Bella."_

Davina's walnut eyes strayed from the page and closed. She took a slow, deep breath before continuing the story.

_"I tried Carlisle's approach, at first. I tried telling them what Bella meant to Edward, but they didn't seem to care. Edward was nothing and no one to them. I should have guessed as much, I know, but I just thought...As someone who had found his mate, that this James might understand. That he might be deterred from hunting Bella, without any need for bloodshed. But that was not the case._

_What I did next might sound a bit medieval, but it worked. I could see that they both underestimated me and my abilities, so I challenged him to a duel. Go ahead, get your laughing out of the way now, I'll wait...Finished?...How about now? Well, regardless, I am moving on._

_The fight, which I'm certain was only won due to your training and guidance with developing my abilities, would be between just him and myself. If I died, he got his wish to hunt Bella with no one to stop him. If he died, his mate had to give her word not to come after me or my family."_

She could hear Victoria's words as clearly as if she were speaking them to her right now, " _ **If**_ you win, I give you my word I won't come for you or your family."

She had said the words with the same tone present on James' face. Neither of them expected someone from such a passive coven to be able to put up much of a fight. They likely thought she was there to martyr herself; to buy Edward time to get Bella out of town. An idea that appealed to James, because it would make for a more interesting hunt.

_"I realize how naive I sound to believe that Victoria would keep her word, but I had no intention of simply taking her at her word. I just needed her to agree to stand aside while I took care of James – I couldn't take them both on all by myself. I knew once I had won that she would react in anger and in pain. You and I have both seen what a vampire is capable of when they've just witnessed their mate's death. Still, she surprised me._

_She did not attack me, rather she ran away. She made no threat to come for me or my family, but instead for my mate. She vowed to take from me what I had taken from her. Given the luck you and I have in this area, I have a feeling she's going to be waiting a long time to collect on that threat."_

"Why does it always take you so long to finish a cup of coffee?" came Esme's kind, yet teasing voice.

Davina smiled, but didn't look up from her letter, "If you couldn't afford coffee for the first 200 or so years, you'd learn to savor it, too."

"I don't know why you even drink it in the first place," Alice commented idly. "It's not like you need the caffeine."

"She likes the taste," Carlisle answered for her.

Everyone was beginning to gather downstairs, now. That meant it was time to start playing human, and get on with their day.

_"I'm afraid I have to go now, Viktor. It's time to begin our day. I wish you well, and I hope to see you again soon. 47 years, only seeing each other for Christmas, is too long. Perhaps I can come stay with you a while when we leave Forks. Shouldn't be too much longer. Edward, Alice, and Jasper will graduate after this year, then pretend to go off to college, and then we'll move again._

_Love, Davina."_

"Ready to go, Davina?" Carlisle asked.

Davina glanced up briefly, as she folded the letter. "You go on without me. I'll be there shortly."

The running story for the Cullen family was that Edward, Jasper, Alice, Emmett, and Rosalie were Esme and Carlisle's adoptive children – the first three being a year younger than Emmett and Rose. Davina was Carlisle's younger sister, only four years older than his adoptive children. Sometimes she would pretend to be younger and go to school with her nieces and nephews, but most of the time she preferred to avoid modern American teenagers. This was one of those times.

Davina was now 22, as far as anyone knew, and worked at the hospital with Carlisle. She claimed to be aspiring to become a doctor one day, and thus earning some credits for college by working in the hospital. She typically rode with Carlisle in the morning, but had other plans today.

"She wants to drop Bella's present off before tonight," Edward explained, seeing the confusion on Carlisle's face.

Davina gave her nephew a look, and scolded him playfully. "You stay out of my head."

Edward smiled, "I could give you a ride, if you want."

"I think I can manage on my own." She rose from her seat and grabbed her things. "Besides, I need to drop this letter in the mail for Viktor, and you could do with a little separation from your bonnie lass."

Edward gestured to the area around them, "You don't see me with her now, do you?"

She gave a light smile, still headed for the garage. "No one likes an overly clingy boyfriend, Edward. You'll see her at school."

* * *

When Bella saw Davina standing on her doorstep she smiled. When she saw the silver box in her hands, however, that smile quickly vanished.

"Happy birthday, Bella!"

Bella stepped aside and gestured for Davina to come in. "Don't remind me." She'd told everyone that she wanted nothing for her birthday. That she wanted no presents, no attention, nothing. And yet everyone seemed to be ignoring those wishes.

Davina stepped inside of the Swan residence, a smile still on her face. Charlie had already left for work, evident by his lack of presence and his car already gone from the driveway. Davina held the present out for Bella to accept. She took it hesitantly.

"I thought birthdays were supposed to be a happy occasion," Davina commented, taking note of her sour mood.

"For most people, they are," Bella replied.

"But not for you?"

Bella fiddled with the ribbon around her present. "I had a dream last night...I was old and grey, and Edward..."

"Edward was still young and gorgeous," she guessed. Bella's silence and the look on her face was confirmation enough. Davina put an arm around her and guided her over to the couch. "Bella, I understand your reluctance to celebrate your birthday – you see it as you getting older than Edward."

"Technically I am."

"But that's not how everyone else views today," Davina argued. "Birthdays nowadays are celebrated for one of three reasons. One, to throw a big party and have a good time. Two, to receive attention from everyone around them and get lots of presents. Or three, to celebrate the birth of someone you love."

Bella hadn't considered this perspective. She'd been assuming that everyone was just trying to make sure that she celebrated her birthday. That she didn't miss out on this human tradition, like going to prom. Not that she wanted to go to prom, but Edward had still made her go.

"Your parents love you, and this day is one of the best days of their lives. It's the day you came into the world and enriched their lives. Edward wants to celebrate today for the same reason. Celebrating your birth, the fact that you exist, is his way of expressing thanks that you've come into his life. It's why the rest of us want to celebrate. Well, that and the last birthday party we had was Emmett's and that was more than a few decades ago."

Bella gave a mild laugh. She still didn't like the idea of anyone celebrating her birthday, but this new perspective Davina had brought to her attention was pretty compelling. Maybe she could lighten up a little, and stop acting like today was one big funeral. _**Maybe**_.

"Just try to humor everyone today, please. Let them celebrate for them," Davina all but begged.

Before Bella could respond, there was a knock on the door. She glanced over at Davina as she stood up to go answer it. It was Jacob Black.

"Bella!" he beamed.

"Jacob! Come in." Bella stepped aside to let Jacob into the house. He noticed Davina still sitting on the couch, but ignored her smile. "Hello, biceps! You know anabolic steroids are really bad for you," Bella joked.

"Well, I'm just filling out, Bella. You know, it wouldn't seem so drastic if we hung out more."

Bella gave her trademark smile and nod. "So what are you doing here?"

"I was just buying a part for the, uh, Rabbit," he said proudly. "You should really come take a ride when it's done."

"Is it fast?"

"Um…" Jacob seemed like he was struggling for the right answer. Did Bella like fast cars? "It's-it's decent."

Bella smiled at him, "I'm kidding."

"Okay. Good." They both broke out in awkward laughter. Davina almost felt sorry for Jacob – he was so nervous. "Hey, happy birthday. Your dad told my dad, so…"

Bella didn't like this, but she couldn't exactly explain to Jacob why she didn't like celebrating her aging. She cast a glance over at Davina, who communicated with a look to remember what she had said about people celebrating her life, not her aging. "Yeah, of course he did," she mumbled.

Jacob pulled a small dream catcher out of his pocket and held it up. "I saw this the other day and thought of you. Catches bad dreams."

Bella accepted the gift, surprised by how much she actually liked it. "That's kind of perfect. Um…thank you."

"No problem."

There was a brief awkward silence, as both of them realized they had nothing more to really say, right now. Though Davina was certain that Jacob's lack of sociability had more to do with her presence than anything else.

"Well, I should, uh, I should get to school," said Bella, breaking the silence. "So should you."

"Right."

The two hugged somewhat awkwardly, and Bella thanked him again for the gift. Jacob shot another look at Davina on his way out, but she only flashed him another smile. He wasn't entirely sure why he was being rushed out, when the Cullen chick was still able to stay; but Bella must have a reason. Maybe he had interrupted something when he dropped in. Maybe she was saying goodbye to her right now. Whatever it was, it wasn't his business, and he certainly had no right being jealous that she got to stay longer than he did.

"See?" said Davina once the door was closed. "Now was that so hard?"

Bella dropped her eyes and greed reluctantly, "I guess not."

Davina laughed lightly, "I'll take it." She stood up from the couch and headed towards the door. "Well, I hope you enjoy my gift as much as you enjoyed Jacob Black's. Alice picked out the materials, but I made it. And fair warning, there is a party tonight, but you didn't hear it from me." She mimed zipping her lips shut.

Bella groaned internally. A party? Why did there have to be a party? She took a deep breath. "Thanks for the heads up…and the talk…and the gift."

"Have a good day, Bella." She was almost out the door, when Bella called after her.

"Hey, Davina?"

Davina stopped and looked back.

"How old were you? When you turned?"

Bella has just realized that in all of Davina's arguments, she had never once tried pointing out to Bella that she wasn't seventeen when she turned. It might have been just Edward's way of trying to get Bella to quit whining, but that still left Bella rather curious. Davina was posing as a woman in her early twenties, which Edward had said she did a lot. So how old was she exactly?

"That's a…complicated question," said Davina. "I never actually turned, so I consider myself to be around three hundred-ish."

Bella remembered the story Edward had told her last spring about Davina only being partly turned. He said Davina had been attacked by a vampire one night and left for dead or to turn, no one knew which. Viktor found her a while later, and sucked the venom out of her. The venom had already affected some of her body, but not all of it, leaving her only partly turned.

Bella assumed that this is what Davina meant when she said she was never actually turned. But she could at least tell her what age she was when she was attacked, couldn't she? Why did she have to make things more complicated than they had to be?

Davina took advantage of Bella's momentary confusion. "I'll see you tonight, Bella."

Bella tried to stop her and get a straight answer from her, but when she opened the door to call after her, Davina was already in her car. She smiled and waved to Bella, as she backed out of the driveway. Bella waved disappointingly in return, and then went back inside. She was running late for school, and really should get going. But before heading off to school – to see Edward – Bella decided to open her present from Davina.

She sat next to it on the couch, pulled the ribbon to untie it, and slid off the lid. Inside was a gorgeous, yet somehow simple, emerald green dress. It was absolutely beautiful. The dress looked tailor made, but how could Davina have made something so precise? Where had she gotten Bella's measurements from? Bella wanted to ask, but you didn't ask those kinds of things when someone made you such an incredible gift. To do so would have been rude.

She figured Edward must have measured her in her sleep or something, and then given the information to Davina. It was honestly the most logical explanation that Bella could come up with right now. She supposed Davina could have gotten her dress size from her clothes in her closet, but those were generic and this dress looked like it would fit like a glove.

It may not have been as useful as Jacob's gift, but it was still nice. Bella brought both gifts upstairs and put them on her bed. She grabbed her school bag, and headed back downstairs to leave for school. She thought of the party Davina mentioned. If there was in fact a party tonight, which there more than likely was, then she would suck it up and go for them; and she would wear the new dress.


	2. All Good Things

Chapter 2: All Good Things...

Edward had been surprised by Bella's change of attitude towards today. She hadn't done a full turnaround, and she still preferred to let as few people know as possible, but she appeared to have relaxed a little about it all. Edward suspected it had something to do with Davina's visit before school, but didn't ask. In all honesty, he was just happy to be able to tell the girl he loved 'happy birthday' without her looking too upset about the reminder.

Bella didn't put up much of a fight when it came out that the Cullens were throwing her a party, either. She did her best to act surprised, for Alice's sake, but Edward could tell she wasn't very surprised by the news. He eventually got her to admit that Davina had already told her about it, when they were on their way to his house for the party.

Davina and Alice were running a little behind when they got there, so they were told to go somewhere else in the house, until they were ready for them. Alice kept changing her mind on the position of the decorations, and Davina was still trying to put the finishing touches on Bella's cake.

Bella walked around the room, looking at the various paintings all along the walls of Carlisle's office. She stopped in front of a large painting containing a comparatively sedate quartet of figures atop a high balcony, looking down calmly on the mayhem below them.

“The Volturi,” said Edward, appearing at her side.

Bella looked at him, confusion in her eyes, “The what?”

“The Volturi ,” he repeated. “They're a very old, very powerful family. I guess they’re the closest thing to royalty my world has.”

Bella examined the painting further, as he spoke, and realized that she recognized the golden-haired figure. “Is that…Carlisle?”

“Yeah. He lived with them for a few decades. He described them as very refined. No respect for human life, of course, but respect for the arts and the sciences, at least,” he told her. “And the law. Above all, the law.”

“Vampires have laws?”

“Not very many,” Edward admitted. “And only one that’s regularly enforced.”

“What is it?”

Edward eyed her carefully as he spoke. “That we keep the existence of our kind a secret. We don’t make spectacles of ourselves, and we don’t kill conspicuously. Unless, of course, you want to die.”

Bella didn't seem to understand. She stared at him blankly, waiting for him to continue.

“It isn’t easy to kill a vampire. Carlisle spent months trying when he first turned – drowning himself in the ocean, jumping from great heights, starving himself…That’s how he discovered we could survive off of animal blood. He heard a deer passing his hideout one night, and couldn’t resist anymore,” he explained.

“But if he really wanted to die, then why didn’t he just ask the Volturi once he found them?” she asked curiously.

“Because he found something else in Italy. Something worth living for.”

“What?”

“Davina.” Edward paused for effect. Bella seemed to be even more intrigued now. “The way they tell it, they were immediately fascinated with one another – her with his golden eyes and strange diet, and he with her odd physiology. They spent so much time together during his stay, that the Volturi mistook their connection with one another for a more…romantic one.” He couldn't resist smiling as he said the last.

“Wait, so they thought Carlisle and Davina were…?”

“Mates, yes,” he confirmed. “They still laugh about it.”

Bella thought that possibility over for a moment. It seemed odd to her that Carlisle could ever look at someone else the way he looked at Esme – that Davina and Carlisle could ever...Then another thought struck her. “So what was Davina doing in Italy? Was she just visiting, like Carlisle, or is she from there?”

“My aunt is a very private person,” he began. The look on his face said he wanted to know the answer as well. “The only things I know about her are the things she wants me to know. But I do know she was born in Scotland, she just wasn’t raised there. She’s visited a few times, but never long enough for the accent to stick.”

Bella didn't understand. She thought she was the only one that was special, the only one whose mind Edward couldn't read. “How is that possible? Can’t you just read her mind like you do everyone else?”

Edward's face contorted to an expression of near-annoyance as he explained, “Actually, no. She spent years training to control her thoughts with her old mentor Viktor. Something about learning to control your thoughts when fighting, or else your opponent would be able to read you? I’m not sure. She said they trained with another telepath like me, so unless she actually wants me to hear what she’s thinking...Sometimes there’s a slip and she thinks about something she didn’t mean to, but they're always little things.”

That was something Bella hadn't expected. Since she'd met the Cullen family, she'd been lead to believe that she was somehow unique in that Edward couldn't read her thoughts. Yes, he could technically still hear the passing thoughts inside of Davina's mind; but when it came to something she wished to keep private, she was actually able to keep herself from thinking about it. Bella couldn't even begin to imagine the years of training it would have taken her to learn that skill.

“What about Carlisle?” she asked. “He probably knows why she was there.”

“Oh, I know he does. But he just thinks 'Ask Davina' over and over again, until one of us leaves,” said Edward. “I know I could wear him down if I kept asking, but it isn't really worth it. And I have too much respect for Carlisle to do that to him.”

“And what are you two love birds talking about?” Davina had entered the room now. She looked up at the large painting before the couple and took a guess at an answer to her own question. “Ah…So were you being broody and self-loathing again, or were you telling her how Carlisle and I met?”

“You and Carlisle,” he answered.

Davina smiled, and looked at Bella, “Did he tell you they thought Carlisle and I were mates?” She didn't wait for an answer. Davina walked back out of the room, laughing lightly, and gestured for them to follow.

“See?” Edward whispered in Bella's ear. He wrapped an arm around her waist and, together, they followed Davina out to the party.

*     *     *

Bella froze at the top of the stairs, when she saw what Alice had done – she'd gone a little overboard for just a simple birthday gathering. Every flat surface was covered with pink candles and dozens of crystal bowls filled with hundreds of roses. There was a table with a white cloth draped over it next to Edward's piano, holding the birthday cake Davina had baked, more roses, a stack of glass plates, and a small pile of silver-wrapped presents.

Edward, sensing her distress, kissed her on the head, and guided her down the stairs.

“Sorry about all this,” said Carlisle, moving to embrace her in a hug. “We tried to rein Alice in.”

“As if that were even possible” Esme joked, hugging Bella next. “Happy birthday, Bella.”

Bella forced a smile. “Thanks.”

Emmett lingered back with Edward, while their parents greeted Bella. He leaned closer to his brother and joked, “Dating an older woman. Hot.”

Edward looked at him as though he were an idiot.

“What?” Emmett asked, wondering if he'd said something offensive. Edward just laughed at him.

Alice leaped forward with a small present in her hands, and passed it to Rosalie. “You first, Rosalie.”

Rosalie thrust the box towards Bella, “It’s a necklace. Alice picked it out.”

“Thanks.”

Alice grabbed Edward and Bella, and pulled them out of the mix. She held up Bella's camera as explanation enough, “I found this in your bag. I hope you don’t mind. Now show me the love.”

Edward wrapped his arm around Bella, and she instinctively pulled in closer to him, too. They looked like a perfect couple. Alice shot a couple of pictures, before Davina pulled Bella's attention away from Edward again.

“This one’s from Emmett,” she said, handing her another present.

Bella shook the suspiciously light package, and looked back at Emmett.

“Already installed it in your truck,” he beamed. “Finally a decent sound system for that piece of…”

“Hey! Don’t-Don’t hate the truck,” Bella defended.

Alice appeared with another present for Bella to open. “Open Esme and Carlisle’s.”

“Just a little something to brighten your day,” said Carlisle.

“Yes, you’ve been looking kind of pale lately,” Esme agreed.

Bella slid her finger through a narrow opening in the wrapping paper and pulled out. The paper tore open slightly, but she was also rewarded with a nasty paper cut. “Ow...Paper cut,” she mumbled to herself, examining the damage. A tiny drop of blood oozed out from the cut.

The events that transpired next took only seconds to unfold, and for Bella they went by in a blur. Everyone looked across the room at Jasper, who had been keeping his distance from Bella. He had been doing well with keeping himself under control around the human girl for a while now, but with the scent of fresh blood in the air, he may no longer be in control of his actions.

...they were all looking at the wrong Cullen...

Edward stiffened. He tried not to breathe, but the damage was already done. The scent of her blood assaulted his nasal passageways, and he felt his throat go dry – he was thirsty. Just being near her was like someone was sticking a white-hot poker down his throat. He couldn't fight it any longer...and he didn’t want to.

With everyone's attention on Jasper, Davina and Jasper were the only ones to notice that Edward was losing the internal battle with himself on whether or not to eat his girlfriend. Jasper took off towards them to try and stop his brother, but the others closed ranks to stop him from getting to Bella. He dodged Carlisle's grab for him, and wriggled free of Emmett's grip; but with everyone's focus on him, and their assumption that he was out to kill Bella, he couldn't get through to help.

Davina focused on her bronze-haired nephew and projected a sense of confusion into his mind. It wasn't enough to subdue him completely, especially with the smell of fresh blood in the air – Bella's blood – but it slowed him enough for her to get Bella away from him. This was the same thing she had done to defeat James this past spring.

Davina's power was the ability to project an aversion field. Essentially, she could make someone become confused about what it was they were doing and why they were even doing it. It was kind of like when someone is walking to another room to do something, and then suddenly they forget what it is they were going to do once they get there.

“Carlisle!” Davina called. She was losing the battle with Bella's blood for control over Edward.

The rest of the family finally decided to look in their direction in time to see Edward pouncing at Davina and Bella. Davina gripped Bella tightly around the waist with one hand, then, as though doing a dance, she spun them both out of Edward's path just before he collided with them.

Bella's eyes were shut tight, her body waiting for the impact that never came. When she opened them again, Edward was picking himself up from crashing into one of Alice's tables. Carlisle and Emmett released Jasper, and the others let them through to help Davina and Bella – though Alice stuck close to Jasper, just in case.

Edward made another lunge for his prey, which was being shielded by his aunt's body. Emmett and Carlisle grabbed him just as he was about to get his hands on Davina. She was ready for it, but thankful all the same that she didn't have to fight her nephew further.

“Get him out of here,” Carlisle commanded.

Alice, Emmett, Rosalie, Esme, and Jasper escorted Edward outside. Bella stood there, appearing to be in shock at everything that had just happened. Carlisle disappeared for a brief moment, then reappeared with a band aid for Bella's finger. He glanced over at Davina. “Check on Edward for me, would you? I’m sure he’s very upset with himself, and I doubt he’ll listen to anyone but you right now.”

Davina looked Bella over briefly, before doing as her brother requested.

*     *     *

“I never wanted to have a party,” said Bella. It had taken a few minutes for the shock to wear off and for her to begin speaking again, but she was now feeling well enough to help Carlisle pick up a bit of the mess that had been made because of her.

“It’s not your fault,” Carlisle assured her. “Your blood is special to Edward. And before tonight, he's never had to endure it in such a fresh form.”

Bella eyed him curiously. “How do you do it?”

“Years and years of practice,” he beamed.

“Did you ever think of just doing it the easy way?”

Carlisle looked her in the eye. “No. I knew who I wanted to be. I wanted to help people. It brings me happiness…even if I am damned regardless.”

Bella was surprised to hear him say such a thing. “Damned? Like hell?” Carlisle didn't answer, or even meet her gaze. “Carlisle, you couldn’t be damned. You couldn’t. It’s impossible.”

“Thank you, Bella. You’ve always been very…gracious about us,” he replied gently. “Davina keeps telling me that I have nothing to make up for, that I didn’t choose this kind of life...I’m still hoping that there is a point to this life, even for us. I’ll admit it may be foolish, but I’m hoping that we’ll get some measure of credit for trying.”

“Carlisle, you’re trying to atone for sins you never even committed…Of course you’re a fool,” Davina teased, rejoining them. “And Edward’s worse than you are.”

“Why’s that?” Bella asked.

Carlisle sighed. “Edward agrees with me up to a point. God and heaven exist…and hell. But he doesn’t believe in an afterlife for our kind.”

“He thinks we’ve lost our souls,” said Davina mockingly.

Realization washed over Bella. “So that’s it? That’s why he won’t change me?”

“Imagine the situation in reverse. If you believed as Edward does, could you take away his soul?” Carlisle mused. With that thought now on Bella’s mind, he turned to his sister. “How is he?”

“Broody. Self-loathing. The usual,” she replied honestly. She glanced over at Bella. “Why don't I take Bella home, and you can try talking to him?”

Carlisle nodded. He waved to Bella and headed outside to see his son.

*     *     *

“How bad is it?” Bella asked. Neither of the girls had said a word the whole way back to Bella’s house. But now that they were stopped in the driveway, Bella had to know.

Davina hesitated, but was honest in her answer. “I’m not sure. This has been his biggest fear with you. This is why he’s always wanted me to follow you two whenever you were alone together. To make sure he never hurt you.”

“But he didn’t hurt me,” Bella argued. “You were all there, and you stopped him before he did.”

“He still lost control, Bella.”

“It wasn’t his fault.”

“Nor was it yours.” Her tone was firm. “What happened tonight was no one’s fault. It was bound to happen sooner or later, it was just lucky for you that it was in a public setting where I wasn’t the only one standing between you and Edward.”

Bella looked at her funny.

“I usually keep an eye on you two, remember?” She gave Bella a look. “Or did you think he was kidding about that?”

“I honestly thought he was just kidding,” she admitted.

Davina shook her head. “Sorry, love, but I've seen too many people tear their blood singers apart over the years, I know how easy it is to give in. And some of them were actually mated to their blood singers, like you and Edward. The loss of a mate is...devastating. Much more so when it's by your own hand. A fate I wish to spare my nephew of.”

Bella eyed her curiously. She looked distant. “Is that what happened to you?”

Davina smiled back into the present. “No. Viktor and I have yet to find our mates. And Viktor is...ancient.”

Bella exited the car and grabbed her presents.

“Bella,” Davina called to her. Bella paused. “I wouldn’t expect him tonight. He needs time.”

Bella nodded understandingly. She’d miss him tonight, but still she understood he needed to keep his distance for tonight. “Thank you for the ride.”

Davina nodded a ‘you’re welcome’ to her. She watched her walk up to the house, then drove away. She didn’t want to say anything to Bella, but she had a bad feeling about all of this. Something in her gut told her that her nephew would make this into something bigger than it was. And of course he would, how could he not? It was what Edward did. But this time…this time felt different, somehow. Davina wasn’t sure how, but she was certain Edward was going to react in a drastic way that was entirely unnecessary.

*     *     *

“He wants to **_what_**?!” Davina questioned in shock. She had known to expect some kind of drastic measure from Edward on this matter, but this…leaving Forks – leaving Bella. This was on a whole new level.

“It’s his decision, Davina,” said Carlisle. “We have to respect it.”

“The hell I do! Where is he?” Davina walked around calling for her nephew, but he never came.

“He isn’t here,” said Esme. “Alice and Jasper took him to Denali.”

Davina wasn’t surprised. Edward probably had Emmett and Rose leave, too, just in case Davina tried to sway them to her side of thinking. Not that it really mattered. If Edward wanted to leave, no amount of family members believing otherwise could make him stay.

She changed direction to head back to the garage.

“Where are you going?”

“To drag his overly broody butt back home,” she answered.

Carlisle flitted in front of her, blocking her path, “No, you’re not. Davina, please. This is his decision. We don’t have to agree with it or even like it, but we must respect it.”

“Bella is his mate, Davina,” Esme chimed in. “If he feels distancing himself from her is in her best interest, then--”

“We must respect it, yeah, I got it.” Davina stared down her brother. “Splitting up will tear them both apart.”

Carlisle looked sympathetic, but still remained firm. “I can’t force him to stay with her. No one can. Surely you can understand that.”

Davina took a long, deep breath. As she breathed out, she released some of the anger she harbored towards her nephew. “I can,” she admitted. “Doesn’t mean I have to like it.”

“Nor do I.”

Davina couldn’t sleep that night. She tried for a little while, but eventually gave up and started packing. The sun was still a few hours out from rising, when she came down from her bedroom with a small bag on her arm. Carlisle and Esme were in the process of covering everything with sheets, when she came in. They stopped and eyed her strangely.

“I’m going meet up with Viktor. Travel with him for a while,” she announced. She held up a hand to stop them from arguing or making any sort of comment. “I won’t deny that I have a big problem with this decision to run away, but I’m not leaving the family because of it. I miss Viktor. And I told him that I would go traveling with him when we left Forks. Though, it is happening sooner than I had thought, my decision still stands.”

Carlisle nodded in acceptance. “Very well. We’ll miss you.”

Davina dropped her bag and hugged them both. “I’ll miss you, too.” She pulled away, and picked up her bag again. “You remember Viktor doesn’t do technology.”

“Of course,” said Carlisle. He remembered all too well the few adventures he had been on with Davina and her father.

“But I’ve still got a mobile phone, if you need to get in touch with me for any reason. And as long as we’re actually traveling, I should be able to keep it charged and stay within service areas. But I’ll let you know if we decide to go home for a while.” Davina thought back to her childhood home. It was a place she hadn’t seen in so long, yet still she could recall it perfectly in her mind. She missed it there.

“Have a good time,” said Esme.

“Tell Viktor I said hello,” Carlisle added.

“I will,” she replied addressing them both. And she was off.

*     *     *

Edward waited for Bella to leave for school, before going inside. He had told the truth to Esme and Carlisle, he had intended for Alice and Jasper to help escort him to Denali; but he needed to say goodbye to Bella. He needed to explain to her why he had to leave. But he also wanted to wait until it was no longer her birthday to do it.

Alice, Jasper, and Edward sat outside of the Swans’ residence all night, waiting for morning to come. When it finally did, they went to work very quickly. Alice and Jasper began removing all evidence of their family from Bella’s life, while Edward wrote her a note.

_“Bella,_

_I’m sorry to do this in a letter and not in person, but I feel a letter would make this easier on both of us. My family and I have to leave Forks. I could give you excuses, such as Carlisle is supposed to be ten years older than he looks, and people are starting to notice; but the truth is so much worse than a few people becoming suspicious._

_What I did to you last night was nothing short of monstrous. Nothing but what I always expected…and nothing compared to what could have happened. You just don’t belong in my world, Bella. It isn’t safe for you. I won’t damn you to the same existence that we all must live, but I also won’t be the monster that destroys you. It’s just better this way._

_If it’s not too much to ask, can you just promise me something? Don’t do anything reckless…for Charlie’s sake. And I’ll promise something to you in return. This is the last time you’ll ever hear from me. I won’t come back. And you can go on with your life without any interference from me. It will be like I never existed, I promise._

_Goodbye,_

_Edward.”_

Edward left the letter on her pillow, where he knew she’d be sure to find it eventually. He double-checked to make sure Alice and Jasper had gotten everything, and then…they left.

*     *     *

Bella could barely breathe. This couldn’t be happening. She’d found the letter almost immediately when she got home from school. She hadn’t been worried by the fact that Edward hadn’t even been at school – after what Davina had told her last night about him needing time – but after reading his letter, she felt like an idiot for not thinking there was more to it.

She pulled up the Cullen house, and flew out of her truck, almost before it was even in park. “Edward!” she called. “Edward!”

She climbed the steps to the front door, and let herself inside. She continued calling out for Edward, as she frantically searched around for anyone. But there was no one around. The furniture had been covered in white sheets. The lights were all off. Aside from the lack of dust, if she hadn’t been here just last night, she’d have guessed that no one had been here in years.

Bella felt her chest get tighter, and breathing became harder to do. Where were they? Could they have really left? Bella couldn’t believe it. She couldn’t believe this was happening. Why was this happening? Over one little incident?

Bella fell to the floor, gasping for air. This couldn’t be happening. Everything was fine just yesterday. All summer long. Everything was going so well for them. Everyone was happy. How could it all just fall apart in one night? Bella curled up in a ball and cried.

All good things must come to an end…


	3. Waking Up

Chapter 3: Waking Up

" _Time passes, even when it seems impossible. Even when each tick of the second hand aches like the pulse of blood behind a bruise. It passes unevenly, in strange lurches and dragging lulls, but pass it does. Even for me."_

The next three months went by in a blur for Davina. Viktor kept her so busy with their travels and adventures, she barely noticed the time going by. But this was how she preferred it. One month fading into another, until it was at last December – her favorite month. Davina loved Christmas. But she was finding it hard to enjoy the holidays, when her thoughts were beginning to constantly – or so it felt – turn to Bella.

Things for Bella weren't quite as easy. For her, time moved very slowly. So slowly, it was agonizing. She tried not to think about it, or _**him**_. She tried throwing herself into her schoolwork. But no matter what she did, the time still seemed to pass slowly, leaving her with nothing but time to dwell on what she had lost.

Neither got any amount of proper rest. Davina barely slept at all, because her mind was constantly wandering. Bella slept every night, but always found herself trapped in a nightmare she could only escape by waking herself with her own screams.

Both girls had tried their best to convince their fathers that they were fine, that everything was normal. Both thought that they had succeeded in fooling their fathers; until the day when Viktor and Charlie had finally had enough, and confronted them.

Davina's intervention came only a day before Bella's. Davina had been growing more and more distracted the last few weeks, much to Viktor's annoyance. He'd done his best to try and pull her out of her thoughts, but nothing was working. No matter what he did, no matter where they went, he could not help her. There was only one thing left to do.

Father and daughter were walking along a trail in a dense, green forest. Viktor grabbed one of the twin katanas he always kept strapped to his side, and whipped the back of Davina's head with the side of the blade.

Davina snapped her head around to look at him in confusion, but the katana was already returned to its sheath, and his eyes looked around shiftily as though he had done nothing at all.

Viktor, like any other vampire, was very attractive. He was built almost as muscularly as Emmett, and had a jaw that could chisel marble, ironically enough. He had a smolder that could make even the most strongly-willed woman swoon. His hair was wavy and brown, and went just a couple of inches below his shoulders – he usually pulled the sides of it back in some fashion to keep the hair out of his face. And since his diet consisted of both humans and animals, his eyes were in a near-constant state of gold and red swirls, like ketchup and mustard.

"What the hell was that for?" Davina asked him, rubbing the back of her head.

"Glad you asked!" he said with mock enthusiasm. "We're supposed to be having fun, Davina, and you, my darling daughter, are being unfun."

"I'm being fun," she argued. "I'm here, with you, doing fun stuff."

Viktor shook his head in disagreement. "Mm-mmm. I'm standing here telling you an amazing story from my youth-"

"I'm sorry, your youth?"

"And you haven't called bullshit once. Where's the fun in that?" he continued, ignoring her interruption. "You're supposed to be the one to tell me 'No, Viktor. You can't take that ancient sword out of this ancient structure, because it's a priceless artifact.'"

Davina rolled her eyes, which were starting to mirror his own in color, at his imitation of her.

"And I'm supposed to argue that the sword is actually mine, I just dropped it on my way out, when the people who built the structure tried to seal me into the hidden room, because they thought I was a demon."

"That happened one time. Since then your excuse has just been 'finders keepers'," she corrected.

"Ha! See? That's the Davina I need," he said excitedly. "Not this…shell that's been following me around for three months."

"I'm not a shell," she protested.

"I bet you don't even know where we are," he challenged.

Davina looked around. "A forest."

Viktor crossed his arms and smiled. "Which one?"

Davina looked and listened harder. "Amazon?"

"Are you asking or telling?"

"Telling."

"Which part are we in? What country?"

"South America…"

"That's the continent, Davina."

Davina turned away in frustration. Viktor grabbed her gently and turned her back to face him. "Hey. I'm just worried about you, wo de xiao jiahuo (my little one). I raised a happy daughter, but what came back from Forks was not my daughter. So stop telling me 'I'm fine' and start telling me what's wrong."

Davina sighed in defeat. "I feel guilty. I was so angry and judgmental of Edward for leaving Bella like he did, and Carlisle and Esme for letting him; but then I did the same thing. I know she isn't my mate, she's not my responsibility, but…"

"Then we'll do what he isn't. We'll check in on her," he said. "We can come down through Canadia after Christmas-"

"It's Canada, Viktor."

"If it's Canada, then why do they call them Canadians?" he challenged. "It makes no sense. Canadia makes so much more sense."

Davina shook her head, but smiled.

"As I was saying, we can stop by Forks to see how she's doing. If she's doing well, then we'll go back home. If she needs you there, then you can stay."

Davina nodded thoughtfully. "Sounds like a plan, old man."

"What can I say?" Viktor shrugged. "You don't need visions to be a good planner."

"Could we at least try not to get caught looking for Santa's workshop this year? I know you found it amusing, but I'd prefer it if we didn't have a repeat of the Yeti attack of '74, or the Yeti hunter massacre of '75-'78."

Viktor laughed at the memories. "I make no promises, little one."

"Viktor."

"Alright, how about this. We'll try not to be seen, but if we are, then I'm gonna have to kill them." Davina gave him a look that said this was no compromise. "Well, I can't eat the wildlife up there. What if I eat one of Santa's reindeer? How's he supposed to deliver presents then?"

"He'll already be out delivering them. That's the whole reason we hunt for the secret entrance during Christmas Eve," she argued.

"You make a valid point, little one."

"Besides, I need to go back to eating normal human food before we get to Forks. I need to get my eyes brown again."

Viktor made a face. "Can't you just wear some of those glasses that go on your eyeball?"

"They're called contacts, and they irritate my eyes," she corrected. "It's just easier to switch to human food."

"If you say so, little one."

* * *

Charlie and Bella's intervention went about as well as Viktor and Davina's, except less violent. Bella still maintained that she was fine; never verbally admitting that she was in fact far from it. And when Charlie suggested Bella go stay with her mom for a bit, she adamantly refused. Still, Charlie's talk did some good for her.

She admitted that she knew Edward was never coming back, and made plans to go to a movie with Jessica – though the latter was more for Charlie's benefit. Charlie seemed happy enough with this and dropped the conversation altogether, for now. And that night, Bella went to a movie with Jessica.

Bella kept Jess talking through the previews, so she could ignore them more easily. But when the movie started she got nervous. A young couple was walking along a beach, swinging hands and discussing their mutual affection with gooey falseness. Bella had not bargained for a romance.

"I thought we picked the zombie movie," she hissed to Jessica.

"This is the zombie movie."

"Then why isn't anyone getting eaten?" she asked desperately.

Jessica looked at her with wide eyes that were almost alarmed. "I'm sure that part's coming," she whispered.

Bella excused herself from the theatre to get popcorn and took her time at the concession counter. She watched the clock and debated what percentage of a ninety-minute movie could be spent on romantic exposition. Ten minutes seemed like more than enough, but still she paused just inside the theater doors to be sure. Horrified screams blared from the speakers, and she knew she'd waited long enough.

The rest of the movie was comprised of gruesome zombie attacks and endless screaming from the handful of people left alive, their numbers dwindling quickly. At the end, a haggard zombie shambled after the last shrieking survivor. The scene kept cutting between the horrified face of the heroine, and the dead, emotionless face of her pursuer, back and forth as it closed the distance. There were collective gasps and screams as she was eaten.

"So where do you want to eat?" Jess asked, as they exited the theater.

"I don't care."

"Okay."

Jess started talking about the male lead in the movie as they walked. Bella nodded as she gushed over his hotness, unable to remember seeing a non-zombie man at all. She looked around them as they crossed a street, and she stopped. Something had caught her eye.

Down the street they were crossing was a biker bar. The windows were covered from inside and there were neon signs, advertisements for different brands of beer, glowing in front of them. The biggest sign, in brilliant green, was the name of the bar—One-Eyed Pete's. The door was propped open; it was dimly lit inside, and the low murmur of many voices and the sound of ice clinking in glasses floated up the street. Lounging against the wall beside the door were four men.

Bella felt a strong sense of déjà vu. This was a different road, a different night, but the scene was so much the same. One of them was even short and dark. One of the bikers looked up in interest. Bella stared back at him, frozen on the sidewalk.

That particular part of that particular evening was just a blur. Her body remembered it better than her mind did; the tension in her legs as she tried to decide whether to run or to stand her ground, the dryness in her throat as she struggled to build a decent scream, the tight stretch of skin across her knuckles as she clenched her hands into fists, the chills on the back of her neck when the dark-haired man called her "sugar."...

"Keep walking," came a voice in her head. It was a furious voice, a familiar voice, a beautiful voice—soft like velvet even though it was irate. It was _**his**_ voice. "This is dangerous."

Bella gasped.

"Bella?" Jess whispered taking notice. "What are you doing?"

Bella shook her head, not sure herself. "I think I know them..." she muttered.

Jessica glanced over at them, then back at Bella. "Well, they seem great. Can we go?"

Bella longed to hear the voice again. She glanced at the safer route – at Jessica – then down the street at the bikers. "I'm sorry, I just wanna see something," she mumbled walking down the street.

About halfway down, the voice spoke to her again. "Turn around. Go back to Jessica," the lovely voice ordered, still angry. Bella turned to leave, but the voice was slipping away, as if the volume was being turned down on a radio. She decided to push it further.

Bella walked the rest of the way down, and right up to the man that had been watching her odd behavior the entire time. She had thought he might've been the same man from that night a year ago. But he wasn't. This man didn't even look menacing at all; just confused by her behavior, and flattered that she had chosen to single him out.

"I'm sorry, I thought you were someone else," Bella apologized. "My mistake." She turned to leave.

"No, it's cool. I'll be whoever you want me to be," he told her, mounting his bike. "So. Whadya say?" He seemed to be expecting Bella to hop on the back and go for a ride with him. Something she was surprised she was even considering. But that brought the voice back.

"You promised nothing reckless," the voice reminded her. This was definitely a hallucination, because Bella had never gotten to promise that to Edward in person. He'd asked it of her in a letter, and she'd promised it to herself.

"You promised it'd be as if you never existed," she mumbled back to the voice in her head. She climbed onto the bike, much to the biker's delight. "You lied."

The biker glanced back at her in confusion – who was she talking to? "You say somethin', baby? You know what, never mind." He revved the engine to life, and they took off.

The rush of adrenaline was incredible. The cold wind beating against Bella's face, the speed, the motionless objects flying by them, the roar of the motorcycle's engine – everything about this was incredible. She didn't even notice when she found herself starting to smile. That was when her delusions became more visual.

Rather than hear Edward's voice in her head, she saw him. He was standing up ahead in the middle of the street. If they didn't stop, they were going to hit him.

"Stop, stop, STOP!" Bella shouted.

The biker hit the brakes, and turned the bike away to stop them immediately. He looked back at Bella to see what her problem was, but she was busy staring at the figure of Edward. The hallucination gave her a disapproving look, before disappearing like smoke in air.

* * *

Jessica had been less than happy with Bella's stunt that night. She barely spoke to her the rest of the night, and she played the radio the whole way home. But Bella didn't mind any of this, because it gave her more time to think about what she had just experienced, and how she might be able to replicate it. Nothing came to mind.

Her nightmare that night was particularly brutal. After seeing Edward, after hearing his beautiful voice...there was no way she was going to get away with pushing her luck like that. The next day, however, it was like fate had intervened.

Bella found herself out driving around, for the sole reason of not wanting to be home alone at the time. She passed by the Marks's house and saw two very run down motorcycles for sale on their front lawn. Bella turn back and bought them on the spot. Now, if only she knew someone who could fix them up for her…

* * *

"Bella!" His excited grin stretched wide across his face, the bright teeth standing in vivid contrast to the deep russet color of his skin. He raced over and picked Bella up in a big hug. "Where the hell have you been, loca?"

"Hey, Jacob!" Bella felt an unfamiliar surge of enthusiasm at his smile. She realized that she was pleased to see him, too, and this knowledge surprised her. She'd forgotten how much she liked Jacob Black.

Jake put her down. "It's good to see you again."

"Yeah, you too." Bella gestured to the bed of her truck. "I, uh…recently acquired a couple of bikes. They're not in the greatest condition, and they'll probably cost more to fix than they're worth. But I thought that if I had a mechanic friend to help me out, then…"

"Ah! Me being the mechanic-type friend." He seemed truly pleased by the challenge. His face glowed. "I'll give it a try."

Bella held up one finger in warning. "The thing is Charlie doesn't approve of motorcycles. Honestly, he'd probably bust a vein in his forehead if he knew about this. So you can't tell Billy."

"Sure, sure." Jacob smiled. "I understand."

"I'll pay you," Bella continued.

"No. I want to help. You can't pay me," he insisted.

"Well... how about a trade, then?" she suggested. "I only need one bike—and I'll need lessons, too. So how about this? I'll give you the other bike, and then you can teach me."

"Swee-eet." He made the word into two syllables. "So when do we start?"

"Um, now? Please?"

"Alright." Jacob opened the truck bed lift gate, and grabbed one of the bikes. Bella cautioned him to be careful, since they were rather heavy; but he lifted the bike out with ease, as though it were as light as a feather. Bella just watched him in astonishment.

He'd passed that point where the soft muscles of childhood hardened into the solid, lanky build of a teenager; the tendons and veins had become prominent under the red-brown skin of his arms, his hands. His face was still sweet like Bella had remembered it, though it had hardened, too—the planes of his cheekbones sharper, his jaw squared off, all childish roundness gone.

"Jake, you're, like, really buff. How did that happen?" Bella questioned in awe. "You're like 16, I don't get it."

"Mmm-hmm. Age is just a number, baby. What are you, like, 40 now?" he teased.

"It feels like that sometimes," she mumbled.

Bella had a surprisingly good time with Jacob that afternoon. They hung out in his garage, talking as Jake took apart the bikes to see what he was working with – all in all a surprisingly good time. But that didn't keep the nightmares away.

For the rest of the month, between school and the holidays, Jacob worked on the bikes in his garage, with Bella to keep him company. The bikes required a lot of work and a lot of money; but, eventually, they were finished.

It was early January, by the time Jake had finished them. Bella was so excited when she heard they were ready, she raced down to La Push, not even bothering to dial back her enthusiasm so that Charlie didn't get the wrong idea.

Jacob had a spot in mind where they could go to ride without someone seeing them. It was somewhere south out of town. The dirt road wove in and out of the forest—sometimes there was nothing but trees, and then there would suddenly be a breathtaking glimpse of the Pacific Ocean, reaching to the horizon, dark gray under the clouds. They were above the shore, on top of the cliffs that bordered the beach there and the view seemed to stretch on forever.

Bella slowed down to safely stare out across the ocean now and then, as the road wound closer to the sea cliffs.

"If I told you I couldn't have fixed these bikes, what would you have said?" Jacob asked. He seemed somewhat afraid of her answer.

"Are you doubting your mad skills?"

Jacob cracked a small smile. "No. Definitely not. I mean, they'll run fine. It's just, uh…maybe if I was smart, I would have dragged out the rebuild a bit."

Bella had done her best to make sure Jake knew they were just friends – that she wasn't looking for anything romantic with him. Still, he seemed to think they were building their way up to something more than friendship. She needed to say something to reign in those thoughts, without hurting his feelings.

"If you told me you couldn't fix these bikes, I would say that's really too bad; but that we're just gonna have to find something else to do," she said idly.

Jacob smiled again. That seemed to make him feel better.

That was when Bella noticed four figures standing on a rocky ledge, much too close to the precipice. Despite the chill in the air today, they seemed to be wearing only shorts.

As she watched, the tallest person stepped closer to the brink. Bella slowed automatically, her foot hesitating over the brake pedal. And then he threw himself off the edge.

"Oh, my god!" she shouted, stomping down on the brake.

"What's wrong?" Jacob shouted back, alarmed.

Bella threw open her door and exited the truck, which made no sense at all. The fastest way to a phone was to drive back to Billy's. But she couldn't believe what she'd just seen.

Jacob laughed, following her out of the truck. Bells spun to stare at him wildly. "They're just cliff diving, Bella. Recreation. La Push doesn't have a mall, you know."

"Cliff diving?" she repeated, dazed. Bella stared in disbelief as a second figure stepped to the edge, paused, and then very gracefully leaped into space. He fell for what seemed like an eternity, finally cutting smoothly into the dark gray waves below.

"Yeah, most of us jump from lower down, that rock that juts out from the cliff about halfway." He pointed out his window. The place he indicated did seem much more reasonable. "Those guys are insane. Probably showing off how tough they are. I mean, really, it's freezing today. That water can't feel good."

"You jump off the cliff?" Bella hadn't missed the "us."

"Sure, sure." He shrugged and grinned. "It's fun. A little scary, but a total rush."

Bella looked back at the cliffs, where the third figure was pacing the edge. She'd never witnessed anything so reckless in all her life.

Jacob sighed. "Are we going to try out the bikes or not?" he demanded.

"Okay, okay," Bella tore her eyes away from the cliff, and hopped back inside the truck with Jacob. They were on their way down the road again, when she asked him, "So who were those guys—the crazy ones?"

Jacob made a disgusted sound in the back of his throat. "The La Push gang."

"You have a gang?"

He laughed once at her reaction. "Not like that. I swear, they're like hall monitors gone bad. They don't start fights, they keep the peace." He snorted. "There was this guy from up somewhere by the Makah Rez, big guy too, scary-looking. Well, word got around that he was selling meth to kids, and Sam Uley and his disciples ran him off our land. They're all about our land, and tribe pride... it's getting ridiculous. The worst part is that the council takes them seriously. Embry said that the council actually meets with Sam." He shook his head, face full of resentment. "Embry also heard from Leah Clearwater that they call themselves 'protectors' or something like that."

"You don't like them very much."

"Does it show?" he asked sarcastically.

"Well... It doesn't sound like they're doing anything bad." Bella tried to soothe him, to make him cheerful again. "Just sort of annoyingly goody-two-shoes for a gang."

"Yeah. Annoying is a good word. They're always showing off—like the cliff thing. They act like... like, I don't know. Like tough guys. I was hanging out at the store with Embry and Quil once, last semester, and Sam came by with his followers, Jared and Paul. Quil said something, you know how he's got a big mouth, and it pissed Paul off. His eyes got all dark, and he sort of smiled—no, he showed his teeth but he didn't smile—and it was like he was so mad he was shaking or something. But Sam put his hand against Paul's chest and shook his head. Paul looked at him for a minute and calmed down. Honestly, it was like Sam was holding him back—like Paul was going to tear us up if Sam didn't stop him." He groaned. "Like a bad western. You know, Sam's a pretty big guy, he's twenty. But Paul's just sixteen, too, shorter than me and not as beefy as Quil. I think any one of us could take him."

"Tough guys," Bella agreed. "It all sounds really annoying and... strange. But I don't get why you're taking it so personally." She peeked over at his face, hoping she hadn't offended him. He was suddenly calm, staring out the side window.

He sighed. "It's just... the way they treat me. It creeps me out." The words started to rush out now. "You know, the council is supposed to be made up of equals, but if there was a leader, it would be my dad. I've never been able to figure out why people treat him the way they do. Why his opinion counts the most. It's got something to do with his father and his father's father. My great-grandpa, Ephraim Black, was sort of the last chief we had, and they still listen to Billy, maybe because of that. But I'm just like everyone else. Nobody treats me special... until now."

"Sam treats you special?"

"Yeah," he agreed, looking up at Bella with troubled eyes. "He looks at me like he's waiting for something... like I'm going to join his stupid gang someday. He pays more attention to me than any of the other guys. I hate it."

"You don't have to join anything." Her voice was angry. This was really upsetting Jacob, and that infuriated her.

"Yeah."

"What?" She could tell there was more.

He frowned, his eyebrows pulling up in a way that looked sad and worried rather than angry. "It's Embry. He's been avoiding me lately. And it's not just me—it's Quil, too, and everyone. Embry missed a week of school, but he was never home when we tried to see him. And when he came back, he looked... he looked freaked out. Terrified. Quil and I both tried to get him to tell us what was wrong, but he wouldn't talk to either one of us."

Bella stared at Jacob, biting her lip anxiously—he was really frightened.

"Then this week, out of nowhere, Embry's hanging out with Sam and the rest of them. He was out on the cliffs today." His voice was low and tense. "Bella, they bugged him even more than they bother me. He didn't want anything to do with them. And now Embry's following Sam around like he's joined a cult. And that's the way it was with Paul. Just exactly the same. He wasn't friends with Sam at all. Then he stopped coming to school for a few weeks, and, when he came back, suddenly Sam owned him. I don't know what it means. I can't figure it out, and I feel like I have to, because Embry's my friend and...Sam's looking at me funny . . and..." He trailed off.

"Have you talked to Billy about this?" Bella asked. His horror was spreading to her. She had chills running on the back of her neck.

Now there was anger on his face. "Yes," he snorted. "That was helpful."

"What did he say?"

Jacob's expression was sarcastic, and when he spoke, his voice mocked the deep tones of his father's voice. "It's nothing you need to worry about now, Jacob. In a few years, if you don't... well, I'll explain later." And then his voice was his own. "What am I supposed to get from that? Is he trying to say it's some stupid puberty, coming-of-age thing? This is something else. Something wrong."

* * *

"Fancy place," Viktor remarked, looking around the Cullen house. "Are all your homes this extravagant?"

"More or less," Davina admitted. "You can stay here, while I go check on Bella. Just…try not to break anything, will you?"

"I'll try. But I," he began. They finished his thought together. "Make no promises."

Viktor said those words a lot, but only to keep from breaking promises. If there were something he genuinely felt he could do, then he would make a promise. But if he felt he might not be able to do what was asked of him, he chose to ere on the side of caution and not promise anything. This was mostly the case when it came to Davina asking something of him, because he hated to let her down more than anyone else.

After a long overdue shower, and change of clothes, Davina was ready to head over to the Swan residence.

"If I get held up for some reason, I'll call you." Davina grabbed the phone receiver and brought it over to Viktor. "See the screen, here? Only answer it if you see my name pop up right here. And to answer you need to press this button here. And when you do answer it-"

Viktor looked at her with mild annoyance. "Just because I refuse to own technology, doesn't mean I don't know how it works."

"Are you sure? You thought the watch was the most amazing thing, when it was invented. You _**still**_ think it's the most amazing invention."

"Yeah. Because it had just been invented, and it meant no more sundials." His face said these reasons should be obvious enough to not need saying.

"But they've made better watches since then, and you still have a first generation pocket watch."

Viktor touched a hand to the pocket watch he wore in his pocket. "It was a gift from my loving daughter. Someone who was much less sarcastic than you are now."

Davina laughed and kissed his cheek. "I love you, too, old man."

Davina played out all kinds of different scenarios in her head as she ran to Bella's. Despite how well Bella may be doing now, how angry would she be at Davina? Would she hate all of her family for leaving her? Would she simply be angry with the rest of them by association to Edward? Davina had no idea what type of reaction to expect from Bella, but she doubted it would be good.

* * *

"Okay, where's your clutch?"

Bella pointed to the lever on her left handlebar. Letting go of the grip was a mistake. The heavy bike wobbled underneath me, threatening to knock me sidewise. I grabbed the handle again, trying to hold it straight.

"Don't worry, it'll stay up when you're moving," he promised. "Now where's your brake?"

"Behind my right foot."

"Wrong." He grabbed her right hand and curled her fingers around the lever over the throttle.

"But you said—"

"This is the brake you want. Don't use the back brake now, that's for later, when you know what you're doing."

"That doesn't sound right," she said suspiciously. "Aren't both brakes kind of important?"

"Forget the back brake, okay? Here—" He wrapped his hand around hers and made her squeeze the lever down. "That is how you brake. Don't forget."

"Fine."

"Throttle?"

Bella twisted the right grip.

"Gearshift?"

She nudged it with her left calf.

"Very good. I think you've got all the parts down. Now you just have to get it moving."

"Uh-huh," she muttered, afraid to say more. Her stomach was contorting strangely. She stared down the long stretch of dirt road, bordered by thick misty green on every side. The road was sandy and damp. Better than mud.

Jacob finished his instructions on how to start the engine and get the bike moving. He told her to go slow; but her nerves brought back her hallucination of Edward, which made her react, rather than act.

"This is reckless and childish and idiotic, Bella," the velvet voice fumed.

Bella gasped, and her hand fell off the clutch.

The bike bucked under her, yanking her forward. The growling engine choked to a stop.

"Bella?"

"I'm fine," Bella mumbled, dazed. "Let's try again."

"Are you sure?" Jacob asked.

"Positive."

Bella had to jump a little to slam down on the pedal with enough force to kick start the engine, and every time she did that, the bike tried to knock her over. Jacob's hand hovered over the handlebars, ready to catch her if she needed him.

It took several good tries, and even more poor tries, before the engine caught and roared to life. Remembering to hold on to the clutch, Bella revved the throttle experimentally. It snarled at the slightest touch.

"Easy on the clutch," Jacob reminded.

"Go home to Charlie," the voice ordered. The sheer beauty of it was amazing. Bella couldn't allow her memory to lose it, no matter the price.

"Ease off slowly," Jacob encouraged.

"I will," she said. Oddly enough, she was answering both of them.

Trying to focus this time, to not let the voice startle her again, Bella relaxed her hand by tiny degrees. Suddenly, the gear caught and wrenched her forward. And she was flying.

There was wind that wasn't there before, blowing her skin against her skull and flinging my hair back behind her with enough force that it felt like someone was tugging on it. She'd left her stomach back at the starting point; the adrenaline coursed through her body, tingling in her veins. The trees raced past, blurring into a wall of green. But this was only first gear. Her foot itched toward the gearshift as she twisted for more gas.

"No, Bella!" the angry, honey-sweet voice ordered in my ear. "Watch what you're doing!"

It distracted her enough from the speed to realize that the road was starting a slow curve to the left, and she was still going straight. Jacob hadn't told her how to turn.

Bella instinctively slammed down with her right foot, like she would in her truck. The bike was suddenly unstable, shivering first to one side and then the other. It was dragging her toward the green wall, and she was going too fast. Bella tried to turn the handlebar the other direction, and the sudden shift of her weight pushed the bike toward the ground, still spinning toward the trees.

The motorcycle landed on top of her, roaring loudly, pulling her across the wet sand until it hit something stationary.

"Bella!" Jacob yelled, riding the other bike over to where she'd fallen. He pulled the bike that was pinning her down off of her, and tossed it aside. "Bella! Bella, are you alive?"

"I'm fine," she assured him, unaware of the large gash on her forehead. "Let's do it again."

"No. No more bikes. Not today." Jacob still sounded worried. "I think I'd better drive you to the hospital."

"I'm fine."

"Bella, you've got a huge cut on your forehead, and it's gushing blood," he informed her.

Bella clapped her hand over her head.

He pulled off his T-shirt, already spotted with blood, wadded it up and held it tightly to her forehead.

"Oh, I'm sorry."

"You're apologizing for bleeding?" he laughed. "Let's go. I'll drive." He held out his hand for the keys.

"What about the bikes?" she asked, handing them over.

Jacob thought for a second. "Wait here." He jumped on the black motorcycle, kicked it to a start in one try, and raced back down the road, spraying sand and pebbles behind him. He looked athletic and professional as he leaned over the handlebars, head low, face forward, his shiny hair whipping against the russet skin of his back.

When he got to the truck, he threw the bike into the bed and sprinted to the driver's side. He drove the truck back to where he'd left Bella, and helped her into the passenger side.

"Really, Jake, I'm fine," Bella tried assuring him. "It's just a little blood."

"Just a lot of blood," he muttered as he went back for her bike.

"Now, let's think about this for a second," Bella began when he got back in. "If you take me to the ER like this, Charlie is sure to hear about it." She glanced down at the sand and dirt caked into her jeans.

"Bella, I think you need stitches. I'm not going to let you bleed to death."

"I won't," she promised. "Let's just take the bikes back first, and then we'll make a stop at my house so I can dispose of the evidence before we go to the hospital."

"What about Charlie?"

"He said he had to work today."

"Are you really sure?"

"Trust me. I'm an easy bleeder. It's not nearly as dire as it looks."

Jacob wasn't happy—his full mouth turned down in an uncharacteristic frown—but he didn't want to get Bella in trouble. Bella stared out the window, holding his ruined shirt to her head, while he drove back to Forks.

The motorcycle was better than she'd dreamed. Racing down the road like that had been amazing. The feel of the wind in her face, the speed and the freedom... it reminded her of a past life, flying through the thick forest without a road, piggyback while he ran—she stopped thinking right there, letting the memory break off in the sudden agony. She flinched.

"You still okay?" Jacob checked.

"Yeah." She tried to sound as convincing as before.

There was no one at the Swan residence when Davina arrived there – just minutes before Bella and Jacob returned – so she decided to stay and wait. She was just dialing her home phone to inform Viktor, when she heard Bella's truck pulling into the driveway.

Davina ran to the door, but hesitated to open it. All of her fears of how angry Bella might be with her came flooding back to the forefront of her mind. Maybe she better just observe from a distance. Hide in a closet or something. Then she smelled the blood.

Just as Bella and Jacob were reaching the front door, Davina whipped it open and began looking Bella up and down for her injury. Bella and Jacob froze, expecting to see Charlie standing there. Jacob even looked back to see if he had somehow missed seeing his cruiser in the driveway, then realized that it hadn't been Charlie who opened the door. It was one of the Cullens.

* * *


	4. The Visitor

Chapter 4: The Visitor

Unnaturally still and white, with large brown eyes darting all over Bella's body, the woman stood almost perfectly motionless in the doorway, beautiful beyond imagining. Bella was momentarily stunned. Could she really be here? When she finally decided Davina was real, Bella hurled herself at the vampire.

"Davina!" she cried, as she slammed into her. Davina wasn't quite as hard as the others in her family, but it was still like running headlong into a wall of cement.

Davina was surprised by Bella's excitement. She had played out several dozen scenarios in her head on the way here to prepare her for what to expect from Bella upon seeing her...this wasn't one of them. Still she wrapped her arms gently around her.

Bella, on the other hand, locked her arms around Davina, gasping to inhale as much of the scent of her skin as possible. It wasn't like anything else―not floral or spice, citrus or musk. No perfume in the world could compare. Bella's memory hadn't done it justice.

"Bella, what the hell happened to your head?" Davina questioned.

Bella stiffened as she realized her mistake. It had been so long since she had to worry about being too close or carefree about how she chose to show affection to someone, that it had escaped her mind entirely that Davina was still a vampire. She might be hungry, and for Bella to throw herself right under her nose like this, while bleeding this badly, was very dangerous.

She pulled away from Davina enough to see her face. "I'm sorry, I'm just... so happy... to see you!"

Davina wanted to tell her, "It's okay, Bella. I don't have the same impulses as the rest of my family." But with Jacob Black standing right there, she couldn't. She looked Bella over as best she could. "What did you do to yourself?"

"She tripped in my garage," said Jacob, speaking up. "Hit her head on a hammer."

Davina looked over at Jacob curiously, taking in the fact that he was shirtless and also had a fair amount of sand all over his jeans. "I see. And you thought giving her your shirt to press against her head was better than fetching a towel?"

"There wasn't time to run inside and get one," he growled.

"Well, which is it? Was she bleeding so much that you had to give her your shirt to press against the wound, or did it not look serious enough for you to take her to a hospital?" she shot back.

"Stop it. Both of you," Bella commanded. "I'm fine."

"You're not fine, Bella, you need stitches," Davina argued. "You should be at the hospital, not home."

"Jake was about to take me to the hospital. I just needed to come home and change first."

"So Charlie will believe you when you tell him you tripped in a garage?" Davina's tone implied she knew they were lying, but it wasn't as angry as Edward's usually was when she was clumsy.

Bella avoided her gaze.

"I can stitch you up, so Charlie doesn't have to hear about you going to the hospital and freak out," Davina offered with a sigh. "I'll have to run home and get the supplies, though." She looked to Jacob. "Can you stay here with her, while I'm gone?"

Jacob didn't even get the chance to respond before Bella began to panic. What if Davina didn't come back? "Don't go, Davina." Her fingers locked around the collar of Davina's shirt and she began to hyperventilate. "Please don't leave."

"Bella, breathe," she instructed slowly. She looked Bella right in the eye. "I just have to go get the supplies and then I-"

"No!" Bella cut her off. "If you leave…y-you won't come back."

Davina had every intention of coming back. Never mind seeing how she was doing emotionally, she needed to stitch up her head. Still, she relented with a sigh. "Alright. You and Jacob can come with me. I'll stitch you up there."

That seemed to make Bella feel better. Her breathing became somewhat regulated again.

Jacob didn't know what to make of her odd behavior. He thought she had a thing for Edward, not his aunt.

"Can you help her back into the car?" Davina asked him.

Jacob nodded and reached out to grab Bella.

Bella looked at Davina nervously.

"Do you at least trust me to run upstairs and grab you a change of clothes?" she smiled.

Bella released her grip on Davina, and let Jacob lead her back towards her truck.

Davina grabbed a clean pair of jeans, a button up shirt – something she didn't have to pull over her head and risk bleeding on – a clean towel, and some rubbing alcohol. She grabbed everything and ran back downstairs as quick as she could without arousing suspicion from Jacob. But soon enough, she was sitting next to Bella in the truck.

Jacob drove, occasionally receiving directions from Davina on where to turn. Bella sat between the two, though she was scooted closer to Davina. She cleaned Bella's wound as best she could, tossing Jacob's bloodied t-shirt onto the floor.

There was a sea of questions floating around Bella's mind. But one seemed to stand out among all the others. "Why did you come back?"

"Viktor," Davina answered simply. "He, uh...encouraged me rather forcefully to come back and check on you. And so I have." Davina flashed her a smile.

"So does that mean you're...you're going to leave, again?" Bella could feel the blood draining from her face just asking the question. Her stomach dropped as she awaited the answer, which she was sure was going to be a 'yes'.

Davina looked into Bella's eyes. "Bella, calm down," she said, enunciating each word with slow precision. "I'm not going anywhere tonight."

Bella did her best to obey. Davina watched her face while Bella concentrated on her breathing. Then her own face contorted into shock. "Oh, god, Viktor. H-He's at the house."

It took Bella a moment to catch on, but eventually she understood the problem. Jacob, on the other hand, was completely lost.

"So?" he asked.

"Uh, the site of blood makes him sick," Davina lied, taking out her mobile phone to call him. Viktor took his time answering it. "Hey, it's me."

"I gathered that from the little screen thingy that said your name," said Viktor.

"I need you to leave for a little while. You know, just get out of the house for a bit."

"Why?"

"Bella fell and hit her head." Davina shot a look at Jacob, letting him know once again that she didn't buy their story of Bella just tripping in his garage. "I'm bringing her home with me to stitch her up."

"Why don't you just bring her to a hospital?" he questioned.

"Because she doesn't want her dad to find out."

"Why?"

"Viktor!"

"Okay, okay. Gees. I'll go out for a bit," he agreed. "I was getting a little peckish anyways."

"Thank you."

Davina relaxed a little knowing there wouldn't be a human-eating vampire waiting at home when they got there. Viktor was old enough to have some level of self control that rivaled Carlisle's, but Davina still preferred not to push the boundaries, especially with such a bad head injury.

It took seven stitches to close the cut on Bella's forehead. After the sting of the anesthetic, there was no pain to the procedure. Lucky Carlisle still had some in the house. Jacob held Bella's hand while Davina was sewing her head closed, but it seemed to be more for show and less for Bella's comfort.

When they were finished, Bella changed clothes and the three of them left to bring Jacob home. Davina was tense the entire trip there, and left as quick as she could. She knew it was breaking the treaty to go on the Reservation, but Bella couldn't drive herself back from dropping Jacob off. And to tell Jacob he had to call someone to come pick him up, or wait for Charlie to come home and ask him for a ride would have aroused suspicion.

"You don't have to keep staring at me, you know. I'm not going to disappear."

"I'm sorry. I just…I can't believe you're actually here," said Bella.

"I wanted to come sooner, but Viktor and I have this tradition. Every December, we travel to some of our favorite places in the days leading up to Christmas. On Christmas Eve, we search the North Pole for Santa's secret entrance to his workshop. Christmas Day, we do whatever we feel like. And then the rest of the month, we go home and spend time together." She glanced over at Bella. "I'm sorry I couldn't come sooner – or rather, didn't."

"…You search for Santa's workshop?"

"All of that, and that's what you take away?" Davina laughed.

Bella laughed nervously. "Sorry. It's just…a little weird."

"It is," she admitted. "But I think he started it when I was a little girl. I honestly don't remember how it got started; I just know it's something we've been doing every year for almost 300 years, now."

Bella started to nod in acceptance of this answer, then realized what she'd said. "Little girl? I thought Viktor didn't find you until you were older. When you were attacked by another vampire?"

Davina pulled into Bella's driveway and shut off the truck. "Come on. Let's get you inside."

That was the second time Davina had avoided answering a question about her age and her story of how she was turned. Bella was beginning to see why Edward found it so frustrating to get to know her past. She seemed to refuse to let anyone in. What could be so bad that she wouldn't even tell her own family?

They spent the next several hours talking about Davina's travels with Viktor, and their latest attempt to find Santa's workshop. She learned that Davina still kept in touch with her brother and his children, and that when she was away from Viktor they did the same so that they never fell out of touch or missed out on important details of each other's lives.

Eventually, Davina began cooking dinner, while she talked. Bella sat in the kitchen with her, watching and listening eagerly. She'd just finished when she heard Charlie's cruiser pull into the driveway.

"Are you sure Charlie won't mind my being here?" Davina asked, sounding worried. She could already accurately assume that Charlie would hate her nephew, but where did he stand on the rest of the family?

"Charlie thinks you're great," Bella assured her. She seemed puzzled by the random questioning.

"Well, we're about to find out." Davina nodded towards the door.

Charlie opened the door, as if on cue. "Smells great, Bells. Whatcha cookin'?" He stopped suddenly, as he turned to look into the kitchen. He'd expected to see his daughter cooking away, not Bella sitting on the counter while Davina Cullen cooked.

"Hi," said Davina with a warm smile. "I'm sorry to drop in like this."

"Davina Cullen?" he peered at the figure in his kitchen as if he doubted what his eyes were telling him.

"It's me," Davina confirmed.

"Is Carlisle...?"

"No, I'm alone."

Both Davina and Bella knew he wasn't really asking about Carlisle.

"She can stay here tonight, can't she?" Bella pleaded. "I already asked her."

"Of course," Charlie said mechanically. "We'd love to have you, Davina."

"Are you sure? I don't want to impose."

"No, it's fine, really." Charlie finished walking into the kitchen and grabbed a beer from the fridge. "It'll be nice for Bella to have some company."

Davina smiled. "Thank you, Sheriff."

"Charlie will do," he told her.

"Charlie it is, then."

* * *

Davina was better at idle conversation than Bella ever expected. But after 300 years, she was bound to learn some people skills. She kept up with all of Charlie's questions – he never once seemed suspicious of her answers. And she had them both laughing quite a bit. Something Charlie was very happy about. He'd seen Jacob make her smile on occasion, but her laughter was a sound he hadn't heard in a long time. Too long.

After dinner, Bella and Charlie cleaned up, while Davina called Viktor. She wanted him to know she'd be staying at Bella's that night, so not to expect her. He teased her about it, implying some kind of romance between the two, which she firmly denied.

Meanwhile, Charlie remarked on Bella's improved mood. She'd already been seemingly better with the time she'd been spending with Jacob, but Davina seemed to also make her happy. Unlike Viktor, he wasn't implying anything more than friendship.

When Davina was finished with her call, Charlie wished the two 'goodnight', and headed to bed. Bella and Davina weren't far behind him. The two girls got situated for bed, then got comfy in the bed; but they were nowhere near ready to sleep. Bella had too many questions still. Before they knew it, it was a little after one in the morning.

Bella yawned, thinking of her next question.

"You're tired," Davina noted. "You should sleep."

Bella shook her head. She didn't want to sleep. She wanted to keep talking to Davina. She wanted to make sure Davina didn't disappear while she was sleeping. That's what they had done before. Edward had only waited for her to go to school so he could leave the note.

"Well, **_I'm_** tired," Davina declared. She sank down into the bed from her original propped up position. "I'm going to sleep."

Bella stared at her bewildered. "You sleep?"

Davina laughed. "Always more questions with you. Yes, I sleep. Not as much as you and other humans, but I do sleep."

Bella's head was spinning. Edward had told her about Davina being able to eat – it was why her eyes were always brown and never gold like the rest of the family – but now sleeping as well…?

"I can hear those gears a-turning," Davina remarked, her eyes closed. "I'll make you a deal. If you let me get some sleep, I promise to answer more questions tomorrow – or technically, later today. Deal?"

Bella was hesitant. She really didn't want to sleep. Never mind her fears of Davina leaving while she did, she didn't want Davina to witness firsthand her nightmares. But she felt pretty wired with all these questions running through her mind. Maybe she could pretend to sleep?

Bella lowered herself down onto her pillow, facing Davina. "Deal."

Davina smiled. "Excellent. Goodnight, Bella."

"Night."

Bella watched Davina sleep in fascination for a while. But eventually she drifted into a more peaceful oblivion than she had any hope of.

She woke early the next morning, from a deep and dreamless sleep, feeling surprisingly well-rested. The first thing she noticed when she woke was that her personal heat source was missing. She sat up and looked around for Davina. Had she left? Had it all been a dream? She saw Davina's shoes still on the floor of her room, and sighed with relief. So it wasn't a dream. But was she still here?

Bella climbed out of bed and opened the door. She immediately heard voices downstairs. It sounded like Davina and Charlie were talking, and judging from the smell, she guessed they were in the kitchen. Bella krept out of her room and sat at the top of the stairs to hear what they were talking about.

"How bad was it, Charlie?" Davina asked softly.

Charlie sighed. "Real bad."

"Tell me about it," Davina pressed. "I want to know exactly what happened when we left."

There was a pause while a cupboard door was closed and a dial on the stove was clicked off. Bella waited, cringing.

"I've never felt so helpless," Charlie began slowly. "I didn't know what to do. That first week―I thought I was going to have to hospitalize her. She wouldn't eat or drink, she wouldn't move. Dr. Gerandy was throwing around words like 'catatonic,' but I didn't let him up to see her. I was afraid it would scare her."

"She snapped out of it though?"

Charlie shrugged. "In a sense. She went back to school, she ate and slept, and did her homework. She answered when someone asked her a direct question. But she was... empty. Her eyes were blank. There were lots of little things―she wouldn't listen to music anymore; I found a bunch of CDs broken in the trash. She didn't read; she wouldn't be in the same room when the TV was on, not that she watched it so much before. I finally figured it out―she was avoiding everything that might remind her of... **_him_**."

Davina mulled this information over in her mind, as he spoke. She mentally cursed her nephew and herself for putting Bella through all of this, though her face gave nothing away.

"We could hardly talk; I was so worried about saying something that would upset her―the littlest things would make her flinch―and she never volunteered anything. She would just answer if I asked her something. She was alone all the time. She didn't call her friends back, and after a while, they stopped calling. It was night of the living dead around here. Last night was the first time she hasn't woken herself up screaming."

"I'm so sorry, Charlie," Davina said, voice glum.

"It's not **_your_** fault." The way he said it made it perfectly clear that he was holding someone responsible. "You were always a good friend to her."

"I'm not so sure about that," she mumbled. "I argued with my brother and my nephew against leaving. I even left the family to travel with my father for a while, because I didn't agree with this decision – and because I missed him. But I never bothered to check in on her, before now."

Bella could tell from her tone that she was beating herself up about it on the inside. She wished she wouldn't. Davina might have known how bad things would get for Bella, or at least had some idea after the things she'd seen over the years, but she came back. Davina had come back to check on her, when no one else had. When **_he_** had not.

"You couldn't have known things would get this bad," Charlie told her. "Anyway, you weren't the one that broke her...well, broke her."

"If you ask my father, he'd tell you that it doesn't matter who did the breaking. Bella was still important to me, and I left her the same as he did."

"But you came back. He didn't," Charlie pointed out, as though reading his daughter's mind.

Davina smiled. "My father said something similar."

Charlie grunted. On a normal day he might have asked about her father or made some kind of idle remark. But these weren't normal days anymore. Normal had left town with the Cullens. All he had now was the exact opposite.

"She seems better now," Davina observed, turning the subject matter back to Bella.

"Yeah. Ever since she started hanging out with Jacob Black, I've noticed a real improvement. She has some color in her cheeks when she comes home, some light in her eyes. She's happier." He paused. "He's a year or so younger than her, and she says she only thinks of him as a friend, but I think maybe it's something more, or headed that direction, anyway."

Bella cringed. That wasn't true in the slightest. Jacob was just a friend. In fact, she had been trying to get that very message through to Jacob himself for a while now. But it seemed everyone was intent on seeing what they wanted.

"I've met him, once or twice," said Davina. "Seems like a nice kid. A bit young, but nice."

"Jake's old for his years," Charlie defended. "He's taken care of his father physically the way Bella took care of her mother emotionally. It matured him. He's a good-looking kid, too – takes after his mother's side. He's good for Bella, you know."

"Then it's good she has him." Davina's tone seemed to contradict her words. If Bella and Charlie didn't know better, they'd have said she sounded jealous. But they both just chalked it up to her being tired of Charlie's sales pitch of Jacob.

Charlie sighed heavily. "Okay, so I guess that's overstating things. I don't know…even with Jacob, now and then I see something in her eyes, and I wonder if I've ever grasped how much pain she's really in. It's not normal, Davina, and it... it frightens me. Not normal at all. Not like someone left her, but like someone...died." His voice cracked.

_"It was like someone had died,"_ Bella thought to herself. _"Like I had died. Because it had been more than just losing the truest of true loves, as if that were not enough to kill anyone. It was also losing a whole future, a whole family―the whole life that I'd chosen..."_

Charlie went on in a hopeless tone. "I don't know if she's going to get over it―I'm not sure if it's in her nature to heal from something like this. She's always been such a constant little thing."

"She's one of a kind," Davina agreed with a small smile.

"And Davina..." Charlie hesitated. "Now, you know I'm fond of you, and I can tell that she's happy to see you, but... I'm a little worried about what your visit will do to her."

Bella didn't like this. What if he convinced her that her visit would do more harm than good, and she left?

Davina's face fell. "So am I, Charlie, so am I. I'm sorry."

Bella started to feel sick. She didn't want Davina to leave.

"Don't apologize, honey. Who knows? Maybe it'll be good for her."

"Well, you did say she slept nightmare-free for the first time last night," Davina reminded him, her tone hopeful.

Charlie said nothing, but his face looked as hopeful as she had sounded. There was a long break while forks scraped plates and Davina savored her coffee. Bella was about to stand up and make her way down there, when the conversation picked up once again.

"Davina, I have to ask you something," Charlie said awkwardly.

Davina nodded a 'go ahead'.

"He's not coming back to visit, too, is he?" Both Davina and Bella could hear the suppressed anger in Charlie's voice.

Davina looked down at the table, gently setting down her cup. "He doesn't even know I'm here. The last time I spoke with him, he was pretty adamant about staying away."

Charlie nodded in response, but said nothing. Whatever hatred he harbored towards Edward, he respected that he was still Davina's nephew; and that however much she disapproved of his decision to leave Bella, she still loved him and didn't want to hear Charlie speaking ill of him.

After a few minutes more, a chair scooted from the table, scraping loudly across the floor. Bella pictured Charlie getting up – there was no way Davina would make that kind of noise. The faucet ran, splashing against a dish. It didn't sound like they were going to say anything more about Edward, so Bella decided it was time to wake up.

She got to her feet and yawned loudly. She stretched and groaned, as she made her way down the stairs. She rounded the corner into the kitchen, smiling genuinely for the first time in four months. She was admittingly stung by some of the topics Davina and Charlie had discussed, but she was happy to see Davina still there.

They all exchanged 'good morning's, and Charlie made his way into the living room. He sank into his recliner, and switched on the TV. Bella took advantage of the noise to ask Davina about the rest of the Cullen family.

Davina replied by sliding her plate over to Bella, and handing her a fork. "From what I hear, you don't seem to be eating very well these days."

"I eat fine," Bella argued. It wasn't very convincing.

"If you did, you wouldn't look as weak and tired as you do." Davina glanced over at Charlie and leaned in. "Would it make you feel better if I said I hadn't been eating all that well, either, since I left?"

Bella eyed her for a moment, before finally accepting the fork. "It's not your fault, you know? You can't force someone to stay when they don't want to."

"Oh, I know. But I was a hypocrite. I told him what it would do to you to leave you. I argued that we should stay and let you get over this in your own time, and not just rip away every piece of evidence that we ever even existed." Davina was getting just as flustered and irritated as she had been when she had followed her nephew to Denali to try talking some sense into him. She took a breath. "And then I just vanish with the rest of them."

"But you came back."

"I know, I know. But that guilt has still been plaguing me since I met up with Viktor. For four months, now, all I've been able to think about is you."

Bella stared into her brown eyes. If she didn't know better, she'd have guessed that there was more going on than just friendly concern, or concern for Edward. But that was impossible. She was Edward's mate, not Davina's. Bella had felt it in every fiber of her being. Everyone, including Davina, had said it. This was just a simple matter of a guilty conscience.

Bella took a bite of food from her plate. Davina watched her take a few more bites, and feeling satisfied that she was in fact eating, she told Bella what the others had been up to.

Carlisle was teaching night classes at some big Ivy League school – she couldn't remember where. Esme was restoring an old house, which was actually a historical monument there. Rosalie and Emmett had gotten married – again – and were currently on their honeymoon. Jasper and Alice were each going for another degree in whatever was fancying them this time around, at the college Carlisle was teaching at.

It seemed odd that Davina wouldn't know more detail than that about her own family, but when Bella asked her why she couldn't recall the details, she simply reminded her, "All I've been able to focus on is you. And Edward to some degree, but he has a support system – people who understand what he's going through. You didn't. You were all alone, surrounded by people who were completely oblivious to our world. No one to talk to, no one to properly help you through it. Completely and utterly alone."

* * *

The two girls spent the day talking and catching up on some housework – Bella had fallen behind with all the time she'd been spending with Jacob, lately. Davina noticed that as the day grew closer to its end, the more unhappy Bella seemed to get.

"Are you alright?" Davina finally asked as they folded the laundry in Bella's room.

Bella thought about lying and telling her that she was fine. But what if the truth made her stay? That was what she wanted, after all. "I don't want you to go," she said.

"Ah."

"I know you probably have plans with Viktor to go on more crazy adventures, or something, but…" Bella shook her head and looked at Davina pleadingly. "Please don't go."

Davina continued to fold and didn't look up at Bella. "But I have to. Viktor can't stay here, so I need to at least say goodbye to him. And if I'm going to stay here again, I need to pick up a change of clothes." She glanced up to see Bella's face, and smiled teasingly.

Bella threw her arms around Davina. She was happier than she had been in a long time.

"Can you stay out of trouble for one hour?" Davina teased.

Bella didn't dignify her with an answer. She pulled away from the angel-faced vampire, and watched her head for the door.

"You'll come back?" Bella called after her.

Davina turned and smiled comfortingly. "I promise―one hour."

Bella glanced at the clock on her nightstand. She heard Davina laugh and felt a brief kiss on the cheek. Then she was gone. Bella took a deep breath. Davina would be back. And she had plenty to do to keep busy while she waited. A shower was definitely first on the agenda – she smelled like Comet from cleaning the bathroom earlier. She put away the laundry, taking the towels and wash clothes with her to the bathroom.

While she showered, she thought of the kiss on her cheek. It had happened so fast, Bella hadn't even seen Davina come back over to her to plant the peck on her cheek. But she had definitely felt it. And the sound of her laugh…The only thing that could compare to it was the sound of her own voice.

By the time Bella finished her shower, got dressed, and headed downstairs; Davina was already back. She was sitting on the couch eating pizza, and watching TV with Charlie.

"You're early," Bella said, elated.

Davina smiled and patted the cushion next to her. She waited for Bella to sit, then handed her a slice of pizza. "Viktor's not one for long goodbyes," she whispered. That was the extent of conversation for the rest of the night.

Jacob called the next afternoon, while Charlie was out. He hadn't heard from Bella since she and Davina dropped him off the day before last, and wanted to know how she was doing.

"I'm fine, Jake, really," she assured him.

"If you say so," he laughed. "So when are we going riding again? I disconnected the foot breaks on your bike, so no repeats of last time."

Bella glanced out of the kitchen at Davina sitting on the couch, hoping she hadn't heard that. But her face gave no indication she'd heard anything. "Uh, I'll let you know," Bella whispered. "Listen, Jake I gotta go. I'll call you later."

Davina waited for her to hang up the phone to ask, "What bikes?"

Bella cringed. So she **_had_** heard.

"Well?" Davina pressed. Her tone was surprisingly calm.

Bella took a deep breath and told her everything. How she had been drawn to the stranger at the bar last month. How she had heard Edward's voice in her head, telling her to go back to Jessica. How she had taken a ride with the strange man, just to hear Edward again, and ended up seeing him, too. She told her how she had come across the bikes by sheer chance, and decided to have Jake fix them up, so she could hear Edward again.

"I get that it sounds completely insane," Bella began.

"You're right. It does," Davina agreed. "Hopping onto a complete stranger's motorcycle, and going on a joy ride alone with him? Complete madness."

Bella made a face. "That's it? You're not gonna tell me that I'm crazy? That they were just hallucinations?"

"Bella, when anyone gets into some kind of dangerous situation, they hear a voice in their head. For most people, they hear their own voice telling them what to do. But for some…" She gestured to Bella. "We hear the voice of someone we know. Someone who has done a lot to keep us safe, and is still trying to do so through our subconscious."

Bella considered her words for a moment. This theory sounded a lot better than her being crazy. It made more sense, too.

"Personally, I hear Viktor's voice in my head," she went on. "It's like I'm in training again, and he's calling out various maneuvers and counter moves to me."

"Really?"

Davina nodded. "Mhmm. Honestly, I think it's the only reason I won that fight with James last year."

"Couldn't you have just used your power?" Bella asked.

"I did, a little," she admitted. "But I can't just rely on that alone. If I wanted to confuse him enough to keep him distracted while I kill him, then that wouldn't work. You see, I needed to make him angry. Very angry."

Bella was confused. Surely making a vampire angry would be a bad thing.

Davina saw the confusion on her face, and began to explain. "When someone is angry, they don't think clearly. That's why they always tell you not to make rash decisions when you're upset, or to attack out of anger. Because you aren't thinking clearly."

"And by making him so mad he couldn't think clearly, then using your aversion field, it was enough to keep him confused long enough for you to kill him."

"Exactly." After a few minutes of silence, Davina decided to break it. "You should go see Jacob tomorrow. It's only been a couple of days, and I already feel like I'm monopolizing you."

"You're not," Bella assured her.

"Bella, you should spend time with your other friends. I'll still be here when you get back," she encouraged.

"Why don't you come with me?" Bella suggested. "The three of us can do something together."

Davina sighed and shook her head. Bella was clearly not ready to let Davina out of her sight anytime soon. "Fine. But he'll have to come here. The people on the Reservation aren't fond of me or my family."

Bella would have thought Davina wouldn't care about something like that, but chose not to push it. If she was willing to spend time with Jacob for her, then she was grateful. Now whether Jacob would be willing to do the same was another story.


	5. Chapter 5: Getting Closer

Chapter 5: Getting Closer

It's been roughly two and a half weeks since Bella, Jacob, and Davina started hanging out, and both Davina and Jacob have gotten much better at getting along. They no longer have to try so hard, only for Bella's benefit; they're actually on their way to becoming friends. To celebrate this, the three of them decide to go out to the movies.

Bella picked the goriest thing playing for them to see, but neither of them minded. The storyline left much to be desired, but they all had a good time laughing at all the people who were running to the bathroom to vomit throughout and after the movie.

After the movie, Davina hit the concession counter to grab another box or two of Reese's Pieces, but there was such a long line. Jacob and Bella waited for her by the stairs, both of them still laughing at the weak-stomached.

Jacob tried to be sly and hold Bella's hand, but she maneuvered her way out of it. "What? I can't hold your hand?" he asked.

"No, of course you can," she replied. "I just think it means something a little different to you."

"Okay, well, tell me something. You like me, right?"

"Jacob, please. Don't do this," she pleaded.

"Why?"

"Because you're about to ruin everything. And I need…" Bella sank down onto one of the steps. She hadn't meant to snap at Jake, but she didn't want to have to break his heart and ruin their friendship.

Jacob sat next to her. "Well, we've got loads of time, and I'm not gonna give up."

Bella really wished he would. She just wanted him to be her friend. That's all she'd ever wanted from him.

"Look, I know what he did to you," Jake pressed. "I won't ever hurt you. I promise. I won't let you down. You can count on me."

Bella leaned her head over to rest on his shoulder in a sort of hug. She needed Jacob. He filled the void in her life. But he couldn't chase away the nightmares. That's what Davina was for.

"Got 'em!" Davina bounced happily.

Bella pulled away from Jacob, and smiled up at Davina. Sometimes she could be as adorable as Alice.

Jacob found himself growing irrationally angry with Davina. For no reason whatsoever, he glared up at her, saying horrible things. Bella and Davina were both taken aback. This wasn't like Jacob at all.

"Jake, what are you doing?" Bella put a hand on his arm to try and calm him. His skin was on fire. "You're really hot. Like, you feel like you have a fever. Are you okay?"

Jacob relaxed a little. "I don't know what's happening." He glanced up at Davina, who was looking at him as though he were some sort of threat she needed to be on her guard around. "I gotta go."

Bella and Davina stood there watching him walk away. What was happening to him? But Davina knew. Sudden onset aggression and fever were the first signs of this. And with all the time she'd been spending around him lately…It was just a wonder it hadn't happened sooner.

Bella had planned to go down to La Push the next day to check on Jacob – assuming he'd come down with that flu that was going around. But all such plans were canceled when she woke up at four thirty the next morning, and sprinted to the bathroom.

Davina glanced at the clock and groaned. She threw back the covers and walked over to the bathroom. "Stomach flu?" she guessed.

Bella nodded between heaves.

Davina held her hair and rubbed her back. When Bella had finally finished round one, she carried her back to bed. She set Bella up with a bucket of some kind to throw up in, a glass of water, and a cold cloth for her head. For the rest of the day, Davina played nursemaid for her, but she didn't mind.

That night, while Bella was sleeping, Davina snuck downstairs to get something to eat.

"Still alive?" Charlie asked jokingly.

Davina gave a smirk. "More or less."

Charlie watched her throw some leftovers into the microwave, and dig out some crackers for Bella. He found it odd that she had spent all day tending to Bella, only just now getting a break to quickly grab something to eat, and somehow she still looked great. She didn't look tired, or run down, or any of the things you usually are when you've spent all day taking care of a sick person.

Davina grabbed her food from the microwave and sat across from Charlie to eat it. "Something on your mind, Charlie?" she asked. His eyes on her had not escaped her notice.

"I was just thinkin' about the conversation we had when you first got here," he said. "The one where I said I was worried how your sudden appearance was gonna effect Bella."

Davina stopped just short of taking another bite of food, and put her fork back down. Charlie's words hit like Emmett sucker punching her in the gut – something he'd done several times in the past during one of their many sparring sessions.

Not much scared Davina. But the thought of Charlie telling her that her presence here wasn't good for Bella and that she needed to go, definitely made the list.

"I was thinking," Charlie continued. "That I was wrong. You bein' here has been really good for her. Since you got here she's been her old self again. Hell, the first day you were here, she laughed! That was a sound I'd almost forgotten."

"But I thought you said Jacob-"

Charlie cut her off with a wave of his hand. "Jacob helps to an extent. He's a good friend to Bella, and I still think maybe there could be more between them someday. But before you came, she was having nightmares every night. When she came home from spending time with Jacob, she was happy for a little while, but eventually it all faded. With you here, it all seems to stick. She's my Bella again."

Davina relaxed into a smile. She was happy he wasn't going to tell her she had to leave.

"What I'm trying to get at, Davina, is...Would you like to move in?"

Davina blinked. "Come again?"

"I know it's only been a couple of weeks, but you're here almost all of the time, already. You spend most nights here."

That wasn't true. Davina spend every night at the Swan residence, Charlie just didn't know about it. She'd occasionally 'go home' to give the appearance that she was trying not to overstay her welcome there, but she always returned by bedtime – at Bella's request – to spend more time together, until they eventually fell asleep.

"And I'm sure Bella wouldn't mind clearing some space for you in her room," he continued. He'd been carrying on this whole time, actually, Davina just wasn't paying attention. She was busy thinking about whether this was something she **_should_** do, as opposed to what she **_wanted_** to do. Charlie saw her thinking it over. "You can't possibly be happy staying in that big house all alone."

Davina considered that for a moment. It was true she never slept there, but she did spend time sitting around alone while Bella was in school – since she didn't know how long she'd be staying, Davina hadn't bothered to get her old job back.

"I've never lived alone before," Davina remarked. "I've always had someone there to keep me company, whether I wanted it or not. It's strange not to have that now." She looked up into Charlie's eyes, smiling lightly. "I accept your offer."

* * *

Bella was ecstatic when she heard that Davina was going to be moving in. She almost hopped out of bed that instant to clear space for her things. But since she was still recovering from the flu, Davina made her lay back down and rest ("We have plenty of time for that, once you're feeling better.").

It took Bella a couple of days to get over her flu, but once she was feeling better all she wanted to do was move Davina in as quickly as possible. She was so excited about it, that she almost forgot to call Jacob and see how he was feeling.

Davina had tried calling a couple of times, only to be greeted with an unfriendly Billy Black. It hadn't mattered to him that she was calling on Bella's behalf. And it seemed that, even with Bella calling herself now, he still wasn't feeling very hospitable. He was rather short with Bella, only telling her that Jacob was sick and couldn't come to the phone or receive visitors at this time.

Davina guessed that Billy was assuming this would be enough to keep Bella from calling for a while, or driving down to La Push to visit. And this would have worked for any normal person. But Bella was not the kind to sit back and just forget about her friends.

Much to Billy's annoyance, Bella called everyday for the next week to ask how Jacob was doing and when she'd be able to come visit him. Eventually, Billy grew tired of trying to talk her out of coming, and began ignoring her calls altogether. After a week of that, Bella decided just to drive down there and see Jacob for herself.

The trip hadn't exactly gone the way Bella had anticipated. Not only was Jacob walking around outside, shirtless as though he wasn't very sick at all, but he did so in the pouring rain; which lead Bella to believe he wasn't even remotely ill, and hadn't been for a long time, if he ever was.

Jacob had changed radically in the last couple of weeks since she'd seen him. The first thing she noticed was his hair—his beautiful hair was all gone, cropped quite short, covering his head with an inky gloss like black satin. The planes of his face seemed to have hardened subtly, tightened... aged. His neck and his shoulders were different, too, thicker somehow. His hands looked enormous, with the tendons and veins more prominent under the russet skin. But the physical changes were insignificant.

It was his expression that made him almost completely unrecognizable. The open, friendly smile was gone like the hair, the warmth in his dark eyes altered to a brooding resentment that was disturbing. There was a darkness in Jacob now.

In their brief conversation, Jacob had revealed that he was no longer interested in playing pretend, where Davina was concerned. He knew she was a vampire, and he knew Bella knew it, too. In fact, he blamed Davina for him changing into what he was now. His life had been so simple before, so nice and peaceful. And now, because of the bloodsucker, it was all ruined.

Bella didn't understand any of it. All she knew was that she missed her best friend, and he was pushing her away for some reason. She begged him not to leave her. She even reminded him of his promise to her, to not hurt her. But he swore that this was him keeping his promise, and told her to go and not come back.

* * *

Friendship breakups are the worst. Even more so, when you don't even understand why it's happening. All you can do is sit around wondering what it is you did wrong. With no other explanation, you have no other option than to believe it was something you did.

Bella was crushed to lose Jacob. She'd convinced herself that it was because she had lead him on somehow, and he was now realizing that he had no chance with her romantically. She believed that maybe she could have made things more clear between them, and maybe he'd still be around.

Davina didn't know what to do for her. She couldn't tell her the truth, because it wasn't her secret to tell. She couldn't really tell her much of anything, because words were not going to fix this. Words were not going to make Bella feel better. Then it hit her. The perfect, temporary distraction.

"Where are we going?" Bella asked. She'd asked it several times already, and still Davina refused to answer.

"You'll see," she replied. Davina pulled the car over at the end of a path, deep into the woods. Bella watched her exit the car, walk around to her side, and open the door. "You're not gonna sit in the car the whole time, are you?"

"That depends." Bella stepped out of the car, and Davina shut the door. "Are we going hiking?"

Davina made a face. "Yes and no."

Bella eyed her suspiciously. Before she knew it, Davina had picked her up and was running through the dense forest. Bella held tight to the red-haired goddess.

"Don't hold your breath," Davina instructed.

Bella hadn't even realized she was holding her breath, but quickly remedied that. Her eyes darted all over the place, trying to take in the view. But even though Davina was going much slower than she was capable of, it was still too fast to properly see mush of anything.

Eventually, they came to a stop. Davina set Bella down on her own two feet. "I know you're not very fond of all the trees and wilderness up here, but I want you to try something for me."

"Okay?"

"Close your eyes."

Bella wasn't sure why she wanted her to do this, or why she did closed her eyes, but she did it.

"Good. Now listen."

Bella's brow furrowed in confusion. Listen to what? Was there something she was supposed to be able to hear? Had Davina suddenly forgotten that she didn't have super hearing like she did? Then she heard it.

The forest was full of life, all the little creatures enjoying the momentary dryness. Birds chirped and cawed, the insects buzzed around noisily, and field mice occasionally scurried through the shrubs.

Bella opened her eyes.

"Amazing what you notice when you take the time," Davina remarked smiling. She extended a hand to Bella. "Come on. There's more."

Bella took her hand, her skin was still so surprisingly warm. They stepped through a low arch made by two vine maples—pushing past the chest-high ferns—into a meadow. Bella was awestruck almost instantly. She had never seen another clearing so symmetrical. It was as perfectly round as if someone had intentionally created the flawless circle, tearing out the trees but leaving no evidence of that violence in the waving grass. To the east, she could hear the stream bubbling quietly.

"It's the wrong season for wildflowers, but we have the sunlight," Davina began. "This is my favorite hideaway – my sanctuary – when we're staying in Forks. Somewhere I can go to think, read, relax...get away from my insane family." She laughed to herself at that last.

Bella's eyes continued to wander around the meadow, as she stepped further out into it. The ground was thick with tall grass that swayed in the light breeze like ripples across a lake. She could only imagine the beauty of it with the wildflowers Davina mentioned.

"I know you enjoy the sun and the warmth, like I do. So in light of you needing a little cheering up, I figured I could break my rule."

Bella turned back to look at her. The sun hit Davina's skin just right and she seemed to glow. It was subtle, but it was definitely there. She was more stunning than the meadow. "What rule?"

"To keep this place all to myself." Davina gestured to the open space around them. "I've never shared this place with anyone else."

Bella instantly felt incredibly honored. She didn't know what to say. All she could manage to get out was, "You like warm sunny weather, too?"

Davina laughed. "Aye. Reminds me of home." She walked passed Bella a ways, and sat down. "You see, like you, I was raised in a warm, sunny desert. So cold, dark places like Forks are just...unappealing. But necessary, when traveling with my family."

Bella sat down next to Davina. She didn't say anything for fear that Davina would suddenly clam up and stop letting Bella in. And she wanted in. She wanted to get to know Davina better, but it was so incredibly difficult to do.

"What's going on in that head of yours, if I may ask?" Davina inquired.

"Questions. About you." She looked into Davina's brown eyes. "I barely know a thing about you personally. I know you don't like letting people in, but...I wanna know who you are. Who are you, Davina Cullen?"

Davina was taken aback. She'd never had anyone ask to get to know her in such a profound way before. It was always just question after question. They always just wanted to know answers, never to know **_her_**.

She took a deep breath, and let it out slow. Her lips curled up into a smile. "Well, firstly, my name isn't Cullen. That's just what we tell people, because otherwise we would have to say I was married. My last name is actually Ward. It means guardian, and it's the name I gave to Viktor when last names started to become more of a thing."

Now Bella was shocked.

"I'll tell you anything you wish to know, Bella," said Davina. "But there are some things that you can't..." Davina stopped short, and her head whipped around, like a cat hearing something in the distance.

Bella turned to look in the direction Davina was staring in. She doubted she'd be able to see what she was seeing, or hear what she was hearing, but it was instinctual to at least try.

A figure stepped out from the trees to the north, some thirty paces away.

A dizzying array of emotions shot through Bella in a second. The first was surprise; they were far from any trail here, and there shouldn't have been any company. Then, as her eyes focused on the motionless figure, seeing the utter stillness, the pallid skin, a wave of relaxation washed over her. This was clearly another vampire, and the only ones that frequented this area were the Cullens.

She looked to Davina for some kind of hint as to which member of her family it was. But her body was tense and alarmed. That meant this was not a Cullen or even Viktor. This brought Bella to her next emotion. Fear.

Davina rose to her feet, pulling Bella up beside her. Bella maintained a firm grip on Davina's hand, as she watched the figure walk further out into the light. And finally, in the end, there was recognition.

"Laurent." Davina greeted him cordially. She bowed her head slightly, but never took her eyes off of him.

Laurent had been one of James's coven. He hadn't been involved with the almost hunt that followed—the hunt where Bella would have been the quarry—but that was only because he was afraid; Bella was protected by a bigger coven than his own. It would have been different if that wasn't the case—he'd had no compunctions, at the time, against making a meal of Bella.

He'd gone to Alaska to live with the other civilized coven there, the other family that refused to drink human blood for ethical reasons. The other family like the Cullens. Their cousins, the Denali Coven. Surely he'd have changed after so much time with them. Still, there was something Davina couldn't quite put her finger on.

"Davina?" he asked, looking astonished. His eyes shifted to Bella. "And...Bella, isn't it?"

Davina forced a light smile.

Bella nodded in confirmation at her name.

He grinned. "I didn't expect to see you here." He strolled toward them, his expression bemused.

"Isn't it the other way around? We do live here," Davina reminded him. "I thought you'd gone to Alaska."

He stopped about ten paces away, cocking his head to the side. "You're right," he agreed. "I did go to Alaska. Still, I didn't expect... When I found the Cullen place empty, I thought you'd all moved on."

"I see," Davina mumbled. She struggled for something to tell him. But what? If she said they all moved away, that meant she was alone here. If she said they were simply away on some kind of vacation, but would be back soon, he'd know that was a lie. Their home had clearly been barely touched for months.

_"_ _Tell him they did move away, but that they visit often,"_ came Viktor's voice in her head. _"The house has still been disturbed recent enough for him to believe that."_

Davina told Laurent what Viktor said, adding, "They should be back sometime this week for another visit."

"Hmm," he murmured. "I'm surprised they left the two of you behind. Weren't you sort of a pet of theirs?" His eyes were innocent of any intended offense.

Davina struggled not to growl at the demeaning title. "Something like that. As for me, I chose to stay behind."

"Hmm," he said, thoughtful again.

At that precise moment, Davina realized what it was about him that didn't seem right. He looked too much the same. After Laurent had stayed with Tanya's family, she'd begun to picture him, on the rare occasions that she thought of him at all, with the same golden eyes that the rest of her family had.

Bella took an involuntary step back, and his curious, dark red eyes followed the movement.

"The house smelled like it had been vacant for a while..." he remarked, still casual, but his weight shifted toward the two girls.

_"_ _You need to lie better, little one,"_ Viktor instructed.

"I live at Bella's now. I only stay there when my family comes to visit," Davina lied. "I'll have to mention to Carlisle that you stopped by. He'll be sorry they missed your visit."

Laurent took a casual step to the side, gazing around at the little meadow. Davina didn't miss that the step brought him closer to them. In her head, Viktor pointed it out, too.

"So how are things working out in Denali? My brother said you were staying with Tanya's family?"

The question made him pause. "I like Tanya very much," he mused. "And her sister Irina even more...I've never stayed in one place for so long before, and I enjoy the advantages, the novelty of it. But, the restrictions are difficult... I'm surprised that any of them can keep it up for long." He smiled at Bella conspiratorially. "Sometimes I cheat."

Bella couldn't swallow. Her foot started to ease back, but she froze when his red eyes flickered down to catch the movement.

"My nephew Jasper has problems with that, too."

_"Don't move,"_ Edward's velvet voice whispered to Bella. She tried to do what he instructed. It was hard; the instinct to take flight was nearly uncontrollable.

"Really?" Laurent seemed interested. "Is that why they left?"

"No," Davina answered honestly. "Jasper is more careful at home."

"Yes," Laurent agreed. "I am, too."

The step forward he took now was quite deliberate.

"Did Victoria ever find you?" Bella asked, breathless, desperate to distract him. It was the first question that popped into her head, and she regretted it as soon as the words were spoken. Victoria—who had intended to hunt Bella with James, and then disappeared after Davina killed him—was not someone either of them wanted to think of at that particular moment. But the question did stop him.

"Yes," he said, hesitating on that step. "I actually came here as a favor to her." He made a face. "She won't be happy about this."

"About what?" Davina questioned suspiciously, inviting him to continue. He was glaring into the trees, away from them. Davina took advantage of his diversion, taking a furtive step back, pulling Bella in closer to her. He looked back at them and smiled—the expression made him look like a black-haired angel.

"About me killing you," he answered in a seductive purr.

Bella's breath caught in her throat.

Davina prepared herself to fight him. It was not something she wanted to do with Bella around as potential collateral. Or worse, Laurent being faster than Davina, he might be able to kill her before Davina could stop him.

_"_ _Don't start second-guessing yourself, now, little one,"_ said Viktor. _"Stay focused."_

"She wanted to save that part for herself," Laurent went on blithely. "She's sort of... put out with you, Davina."

"Yeah, I kind of got that when she vowed to come for my mate, someday," Davina retorted coolly.

"And so she shall," he confirmed.

"How's she gonna do that, when I haven't even found my mate, yet?"

Laurent's crimson eyes darted to Bella.

Davina furrowed her brow in confusion. "Bella?" She shook her head. "Bella's Edward's mate, not mine."

"I confess, I was unsure of this theory of her's when I first heard it, too," he admitted. "But the way you fought James to protect her. The way you **_killed_** him to keep her safe. And now here you are. Your entire family gone, and yet you remain here. With her."

Laurent's weight shifted slightly, and Bella stumbled another step back.

He frowned. "I suppose she'll be angry, all the same."

"Then why not wait for her?" Bella choked out.

A mischievous grin rearranged his features. "Well, you've caught me at a bad time, Bella. I didn't come to this place on Victoria's mission—I was hunting. I'm quite thirsty, and you do smell... simply mouthwatering."

Laurent looked at her with approval, as if he meant it as a compliment.

_"Threaten him,"_ Viktor advised.

"I killed James right in front of Victoria, with ease," Davina bragged. "Do you really want to get as arrogant and cocky as he was, and take me on? Because you will lose."

"True. James was arrogant," he admitted. "But you didn't have to worry about Bella that night. She was safe with the rest of your family, while you only had to worry about your own life."

Davina swore mentally. There was no bluffing her way out of this one. He knew better than to think she wasn't even the least bit concerned with Bella potentially getting hurt while they fought.

Laurent shook his head, his face kind. "Look at it this way. Bella is very lucky I was the one to find her. I'll be quick. She won't feel a thing, I promise. Oh, I'll lie to Victoria about that later, naturally, just to placate her. But if you knew what she had planned for Bella..." He shook his head with a slow movement, almost as if in disgust. "I swear you'd be thanking me for this."

Bella stared at him in horror.

Davina stared him down as calmly as she could manage. "Neither you nor Victoria are going to touch her whilst I live. And **_if_** you kill me, my father will hunt you down to the ends of the Earth to avenge me."

Laurent laughed. "You're father? How would he know it was me? The rain will wash away my scent long before he comes here. And Bella won't be around to tell him about me."

Davina made a face that said she couldn't argue with that. "No, but I'm sure he'll blame Victoria, and once he gets a hold of her, she'll hand you over on a silver platter."

"And why would she do that?"

A wry smile spread across Davina's lips. "Because my father is the man whose name is his title.

Laurent looked confused for a moment – only a moment. Then it hit him. "You can't mean-"

"Oh, but I can," Davina argued.

"Vampires have been begging him to train them for centuries," said Laurent. "He's never taken on an apprentice before. This is a trick."

"I can promise you, it's not. I wasn't his apprentice. I'm his daughter. And what do you think he's going to do to you, if you kill me?"

Laurent paused, still trying to determine if she was lying or not. But before he could decide one way or another, he and Davina both caught a scent. Davina kept her eyes on Laurent, but he whipped his head abruptly to the left. He glanced back at Davina and Bella as he started slowly backing away from them.

"I don't believe it," he said, his voice so low that Bella barely heard it. More than his confusion of what was coming, was his confusion as to why Davina didn't seem at all bothered by it.

Bella's eyes scanned the meadow, searching for the interruption that had extended their lives by a few seconds. At first she saw nothing, and her gaze flickered back to Laurent. He was retreating more quickly now, his eyes boring into the forest.

Then she saw it; a huge black shape eased out of the trees, quiet as a shadow, and stalked deliberately toward the vampire. It was enormous—as tall as a horse, but thicker, much more muscular. The long muzzle grimaced, revealing a line of dagger-like incisors. A grisly snarl rolled out from between the teeth, rumbling across the clearing like a prolonged crack of thunder.

The bear. Only, it wasn't a bear at all. Still, this gigantic black monster had to be the creature causing all the alarm. From a distance, anyone would assume it was a bear. What else could be so vast, so powerfully built? It padded silently through the grass a mere ten feet from where I stood.

Bella stared at the monstrous creature, her mind boggling as she tried to put a name to it. There was a distinctly canine cast to the shape of it, the way it moved. She could only think of one possibility, yet she'd never imagined that a wolf could get so big.

Another growl rumbled in its throat, and she shuddered away from the sound.

Laurent was backing toward the edge of the trees, and, under the freezing terror, confusion swept through her. Why was Laurent retreating? Granted, the wolf was monstrous in size, but it was just an animal. What reason would a vampire have for fearing an animal? And Laurent **_was_** afraid. His eyes were wide with horror. More to the point, why was Davina not afraid of it?

Suddenly the mammoth wolf was not alone. Flanking it on either side, another two gigantic beasts prowled silently into the meadow. One was a deep gray, the other brown, neither one quite as tall as the first. The gray wolf came through the trees only a few feet from the two girls, its eyes locked on Laurent.

Davina pulled Bella in closer as two more wolves followed, lined up in a V, like geese flying south. Which meant that the rusty brown monster that shrugged through the brush last was close enough for Bella to touch.

She gave an involuntary gasp and gripped onto Davina tighter – if it were possible. The wolf closest to them, the reddish brown one, turned its head slightly at the sound of her gasp. The wolf's eyes were dark, nearly black. It gazed at Bella for a fraction of a second, the deep eyes seeming too intelligent for a wild animal.

Seeing Bella was okay, it's eyes moved to Davina, and they almost seemed to have a telepathic conversation. Bella looked between the two, observing the exchange. Did Davina know these beasts?

Another low growl from the leader caused the russet wolf to whip his head around, back toward Laurent. Laurent was staring at the pack of monster wolves with unconcealed shock and fear. Bella was stunned when, without warning, he spun and disappeared into the trees. He ran away.

The wolves were after him in a second, sprinting across the open grass with a few powerful bounds, snarling and snapping so loudly that Bella's hands flew up instinctively to cover her ears. The sound faded with surprising swiftness once they disappeared into the woods. And then they were alone again.

Bella's mind couldn't move past the fear, the horror, or the confusion. She didn't understand what she'd just witnessed. She couldn't move; her arms and legs were shaking. Bella's knees buckled under her, but Davina caught her. She picked her up, and took off at full speed out of the meadow.


	6. Shifter Wolves

Chapter 6: Shifter Wolves

Bella was still quite a bit shaken, when she and Davina returned home from the meadow. It wasn't the wolves that had her frightened – she was sure they were long dead, thanks to Laurent. What scared her most was the thought of Victoria coming for her. Would she stop with just her? Or would she kill Charlie and Davina, too? Would Davina die trying to stop her from killing Bella, like she had nearly done when she fought James?

Davina did her best to calm her, but it took a while. Lucky for them both, Charlie wasn't home at the time. By the time he was, Bella had relaxed enough to pass as just tired from a long day of hiking with Davina.

Later that night, as the two were laying in bed, Bella looked over at the red head trying to sleep next to her. "I need you to promise me something."

Davina opened her eyes to give Bella her undivided attention. "Anything."

"I need you to promise me you won't fight Victoria, when she comes for me," she said. Bella closed her eyes and shook her head. "I can't even think about what might happen to you, if-"

"Bella, look at me." Davina reached over and took Bella's hand in hers. Bella opened her eyes again. " ** _If_** Victoria comes, I **_will_** fight her, and I will win. And for you to think for even a second that I would lose to a revenge-driven mad woman, insults me."

"But-"

"And secondly," she interrupted. "I can promise you that Victoria will **_not_** be coming to Forks."

"She will. As soon as Laurent tells her that I'm here all alone…with you…"

Davina smiled. "Laurent won't be telling anyone anything ever again, I can promise you that, too. There's no way he got past those wolves. He was taken completely by surprise, and he was vastly outnumbered."

"But I thought nothing could kill a vampire except another vampire," Bella argued.

"For the most part, yes," Davina confirmed. "But there have been one or two other creatures over the centuries that can do the trick, as well. It's Nature's way. Balance, and all that."

"So, you know what those things were?"

"So do you, you've already said it. They were wolves."

Bella made a face. She knew Davina knew more, but it was clear she wasn't open to sharing it at the moment. "Why didn't they attack you, then? If they kill vampires…does that mean they're…they're gonna come after you?"

Davina could see Bella growing distressed again. "No, if they wanted to kill me, they'd have done it already," she said quickly. "They're not going to be coming after me."

Bella took a breath and nodded. She fished around her thoughts for a change of topic. When she felt relaxed enough, she asked Davina about the comment she had made in the meadow about her father ( _"Because my father is the man whose name is his title."_ ).

Davina laughed. "I try not to namedrop Viktor, unless I have to; but, hey, it bought us time."

Bella still didn't understand, so Davina explained Viktor's popularity in their world. He was the oldest known vampire – even he didn't know just how old he was anymore ("He likes to call himself a Pangean."). He had earned most of his fame by helping the Volturi come to power, and served them for several centuries afterwards. In fact, they were the ones to give him the name Viktor, because he never lost a fight.

Bella made a face of understanding. "The man whose name is his title."

"Mhmm. Viktor's studied every form of martial arts to ever exist. And most of the time it's from the person who invented it."

Talking about Viktor seemed to help ease Bella's mind, and distract her from thoughts of Victoria, so Davina told her stories about Viktor and his celebrity status, until she fell asleep.

Over the next several days, Bella barely let Davina out of her sight. She was afraid – despite what Davina told her – that the wolves were going to come for her. And why shouldn't they? They didn't know her. They didn't know that she was a good person that would never hurt anyone. For all they knew, Bella was her meal, and she was simply defending her territory in that meadow.

There was also the fact that they were animals. Animals had no sense of right and wrong, only instinct. And if their instinct was to kill vampires, then why would they ignore that instinct for just Davina? They wouldn't. So, in Bella's mind, they were going to be coming for Davina. It was just a matter of when.

Late one night, Davina looked over from the letter she was writing to Viktor, to see Bella had fallen asleep already. Recently, Bella had refused to go to sleep before Davina, if at all – as though there were some way she could stop the wolves, if they had decided to attack her – but on this night her body was just too tired to allow her to stay awake any longer.

Davina smiled down at the sleeping human, happy to see her finally getting some rest. There was a rap on Bella's far window, like the sound of pebbles being thrown at it. Davina's head snapped around to look at the window suspiciously. This time she saw the pebbles hitting the glass. She checked to make sure the sound hadn't disturbed Bella, then, very quietly, got up to see who was there – as though she didn't already know. The smell of him alone was enough to give him away.

She raised the window and addressed him in a hushed voice. "Bella's asleep."

"Good," said Jacob. "I'm here to talk to you."

Davina eyed him strangely. Why would he want to talk to her – the bloodsucker? She glanced back once more to make sure Bella was still asleep, and then jumped out of the window. She landed gracefully on her feet, like a cat. "What can I do for you?"

"You've probably already told Bella all about me and what I am." Jacob gave a snort. "Probably made us sound like **_we're_** the monsters she should be afraid of."

"Actually, I haven't said a word about your people."

Jacob rolled his entire head along with his eyes. "She saw us in the clearing last week. Bella wouldn't just let that go."

"No, you're right, she didn't. She asked me several times to tell her what those giant wolves were, but all I told her was that the wolves she saw were capable of killing vampires."

Jacob gave another snort. "Of course you did. And now she thinks we're gonna come after you, and-"

Davina held up a hand to silence him. "It's not like that, Jacob. I didn't tell her that to turn her against you, I told her that to make her feel better about that vampire that was in the clearing with us. She was afraid he would come back with his friend and kill us. So I told her that the wolves would have won that fight, and that there was nothing to be afraid of."

"And that's all you said?"

Davina nodded.

Now it was his turn to eye her curiously. "But why? You're not the one bound by an alpha's orders to keep quiet."

She shrugged. "Because this isn't my secret to tell. It's not my place to tell her about the secrets of your people, anymore than it was your father's place to tell Bella about my family's secret." Jacob didn't understand. "When Bella and my nephew were dating, your father tried very hard to get her to stay away from Edward."

"Yeah, I remember." Jacob's hands clenched into fists at the mere mention of Edward's name.

"But he never told her why. He never exposed our secret to her. And it wasn't out of fear that we would tell her about your people in return, it was because he understood that it wasn't his secret to tell. As much as he hates my family, he showed enough respect to not say a word about what we were to Bella, even when he was certain she already knew. This is me showing that same respect for him and your pack."

Jacob wanted to believe that what she was saying was some form of manipulation or lie. But, like it or not, he had gotten to know her over the two and half weeks that they had spent together hanging out. And everything she was telling him, he believed.

Jacob looked up at Bella's bedroom window longingly, and took a breath. "If I asked you to tell her, would you?"

"Jacob, I just told you, it's not-"

"I **_can't_** do it," he snapped. "I can't tell her why I can't be there for her, like I promised I would. You're the only one who can, Davina…Please."

Davina wanted to ask if he'd be willing to admit to asking her to do this for him, once his people found out; but instead sighed and nodded in response. "Alright. I'll tell her tomorrow."

Jacob looked relieved. "Thank you."

* * *

The next morning at breakfast, Davina told Bella what she needed to know about Jacob and the shifter wolves – anything beyond that, Jake could tell her himself, once he was free to do so. She waited for Charlie to leave for work, and did her best to prepare Bella for the information she was about to receive, before completely dropping everything on her all at once.

Bella couldn't really remember how the conversation even started, or where Davina had begun. To be honest she could only remember bits and pieces floating around her head. Namely that Jacob Black, her best friend, was a werewolf.

"They're not technically werewolves," Davina tried correcting. "Werewolves are quite different. Jacob and his people are more shifters. But they do have the same temper and hatred of vampires associated with werewolves, so they're easily confused."

"Why couldn't Jake tell me this himself? Why did he send you to do it?"

"When a pack alpha orders you to do something, you do it. There's no fighting it," she explained. "Jacob's alpha has ordered him not to tell you, or anyone who doesn't already know, about them."

"But you already knew about them. That's why you weren't worried about them coming for you, after we saw them in the meadow."

Davina nodded.

Bella breathed a sharp burst of air out of her nose.

"Bella, I wanted to tell you, love, I just…I couldn't. Not until he came to me and asked me to."

"No, I know." Bella nodded her head in understanding. "It wasn't your secret to tell. I just, uh…I need time to think."

Davina remained where she was, as Bella raced up the stairs to be alone with her thoughts. And for the next couple of days, Davina continued to give Bella her space to think, save for the occasional question. Until, one day, Bella decided she wanted to go down to La Push and talk to Jacob in person.

"I know you said you aren't supposed to go on the reservation," she began. "But I want you to come with me."

Davina wanted to make a joke about Bella still being afraid she was going to disappear on her, but this wasn't the time for jokes. And as much as she knew she should probably say 'no', she was finding it more and more difficult with each passing day to say that word to Bella.

So instead of making jokes or the smarter decision, Davina simply nodded in agreement, and rode down to La Push with Bella to speak with Jacob.

Both girls were exceedingly nervous the whole ride there; though for different reasons. Davina was afraid of angering the pack, and being forced to face the consequences. It was one thing for her to drive down there to drop Jacob off the few times she had done so, before he had shifted, but to come down here uninvited and unwelcomed…

Bella was nervous for some of the same reason. Part of her was worried that the pack wouldn't be happy with Davina coming onto the reservation, when she knew she wasn't allowed. But mostly, she was dreading having to end her friendship with Jacob. All these hikers going missing conveniently around the time this wolf pack was forming. What other explanation could there be? And how could she remain friends with a killer?

When they arrived at the Blacks', Bella went up to the door and knocked, alone. Davina wanted to give her the space she needed to talk to her friend in private, and to avoid any further concern from the pack that a bloodsucker was inside the home of one of their own – not that Billy would have allowed her inside, anyway.

Billy didn't even want to let Bella in, at first. In fact, she had to push her way past him to Jacob's room. But he was sound asleep. He looked so exhausted, like he hadn't slept properly in days. She couldn't bear to wake him.

Meanwhile, outside, Davina's luck ran out. No sooner had Bella stepped inside of the house, had the rest of the pack come emerging from the trees to the far left. Each one of their faces held a look of disgust at her presence.

"What are you doing on our lands?" Sam asked from a distance.

Davina began walking out away from the house into the open field. If this was going to turn into a fight she didn't want it breaking out near Bella. "Bella wanted to talk to Jacob. She asked that I come with her."

"Jacob's girlfriend doesn't make the rules, leech. She doesn't get to say when or **_if_** you're allowed on the reservation," Paul spat.

Davina ignored him. She knew he was baiting her. If he could get her angry enough to throw the first punch, then technically she'd be in the wrong, not him, and she wasn't going to give him the satisfaction.

"Paul's right," Sam agreed. "The Treaty states-"

"I'm well aware of what the Treaty states," she interrupted. "I was there when it was written."

"So why are you here?"

"Hey!"

Everyone's eyes turned to Bella, now. She had seen them all through Jacob's window, and raced out to meet them.

"What did you do?" she questioned angrily. "What did you do to him?"

Davina stopped her from getting too close to the wolves. "Bella, calm down."

Bella ignored her. "He didn't want this."

"What did **_we_** do?" Paul questioned. "What did **_he_** do? What did he tell you?"

"Nothing! He tells me nothing because of your alpha's orders," Bella replied.

All eyes turned on Davina.

"Jacob came to me two nights ago, and practically begged me to tell Bella for him, since he couldn't," Davina explained. She looked at Sam. "He needed her to know."

"Those secrets weren't yours to tell, leech," Paul spat. He looked her up and down in disgust. "Filthy bloodsucker."

Davina maintained her eye contact with the pack alpha, and prepared to explain that she had not given away all pack secrets, that she had only told Bella what she needed to know; but she never got the chance.

Bella reacted out of anger at Paul. Anger at what had been done to Jacob, and anger at the way he had spoken to Davina. And since she knew Davina couldn't react to his comments, she did it for her, by slapping him on the face.

Paul began to shake with rage. Sam tried commanding him to calm down, but it did nothing. Davina told Bella to run to the house. She hesitated at first, but once she saw Paul transform right in front of her, she ran like there was no tomorrow.

Davina stayed where she was, blocking Paul from going after Bella. If he wanted to hurt someone in his anger, then he could hurt her. Unlike Bella, she could handle herself just fine in a fight against an angry shifter.

The two were locked in such a stare, they barely noticed when Jake joined the party. All the excitement had woken him, and was outside and in wolf form faster than any of them had realized. He took a place at Davina's side, surprising everyone, including Davina. This only angered Paul more, and he turned his attention to Jacob.

The two wolves clashed together in a heap of fur and teeth, rolling somewhere out of sight. There was only a moment's pause, before Sam ordered the other two to take Bella back to Emily's place.

Davina moved to stop their advance. "I don't think so."

Sam raised a hand to stop the other two boys. He and Davina moved closer to one another to speak more privately.

"I understand why you want to keep Bella close right now. You want to make sure she'll keep your secret. Make sure that I haven't told her some lopsided version of the truth to make you all sound like monsters that she should hate. But you barely have a hold on your own temper, and you want to bring her to hang out with a group of angsty teenaged shifters? Children who haven't even begun to learn control yet?" Davina shook her head. "Not gonna happen."

Sam bit his tongue. "Then what do you suggest?"

"Bella and I will wait at the beach. **_Alone_**. When you've broken up that fight between Jacob and whatever his name is, you can send Jacob to talk to us. He can make sure I haven't corrupted Bella, and confirm that she'll keep your secret." Davina shrugged. "Bella came here to talk to Jacob about all that anyways."

Sam gave a single nod, then took off with the others.

* * *

Despite being asked to wait alone, Davina could sense the other two wolves watching them from the dense vegetation not very far away. Not that she could blame them, of course. Sam had already shown her an extraordinary amount slack by just allowing her to remain on the reservation. And at least he was kind enough to have them hiding in the woods to give the illusion that she and Bella were alone.

They hadn't been kept waiting too terribly long, when Jacob finally joined them. Sam had broken up the fight between the two boys, they made up, and then Sam gave Jacob leave to speak to Davina and Bella.

Davina tried sitting on a fallen tree a few feet away from the other two to give them some privacy to talk, but they only seemed to stand there in awkward silence for a time.

"So you're a werewolf," Bella noted, breaking the silence.

"Yeah. Well, shifter, technically," Jacob corrected.

"Right. Davina mentioned that. How does that happen, anyway?"

Jacob shrugged. "A few lucky members of the tribe have the gene. Bloodsucker moves into town, and then the fever sets in." He gestured to Davina. "Mine was probably brought on by all the time I was spending with you and Davina."

Davina continued to stare out at the water, pretending she couldn't hear them. Like the wolves watching them, even the illusion of privacy was better than the absence of it being flaunted in your face.

Bella began to feel guilty. She had wanted them all to be friends. She wanted them to do everything together, because she was so afraid of letting Davina out of her sight. And Davina probably knew that spending too much time with Jacob would result in triggering his werewolf side. This was all her fault.

"Well can't you find a way to just…stop?" Bella asked him. "I mean, it's wrong."

Davina's ears perked up. What was she talking about?

Jake was taken aback. "It's not a lifestyle choice, Bella. I was born this way, I can't help it." Now he was getting angry. "You're such a hypocrite. When I'm not the right kind of monster for you."

"It's not what you are, it's what you do," she corrected him. "They never hurt anybody. Davina never hurts anybody…You've killed people, Jake."

Jacob stared at Bella in confusion for a fraction of a second, before turning on Davina. "Is that what you told her? That we're the ones killing people?"

Davina rose to her feet, just as surprised as he was. She held her hands up in defense. "I never told her anything of the sort."

Jacob gave a snort of disbelief.

"It's true, she never said that. I figured it out on my own," Bella defended.

"Bella, they're not the ones killing people. They hunt vampires to protect people," Davina told her.

"Then who is?"

"At first it was the leech with the dreds," Jacob began.

"Laurent."

"Now it seems his redheaded girlfriend is in town to get a little payback," he finished.

Davina stiffened.

"V-Victoria's here?" Bella questioned.

"Was. We chased her all the way to the Canadian border the other night." Jacob eyed the two girls curiously. Why did they seem so nervous? "She keeps coming back. We don't know what she's after."

"We do," said Davina. She looked at Bella.

"…Me."

"What? Why?"

"It's a long story," said Davina. "Cliffnotes version? Laurent was not her mate, James was. I killed James last spring to protect Bella, and now she's come to get her revenge by taking away what she **_thinks_** is my mate. She wants me to suffer the same way she's suffering."

"So she thinks Bella is your-"

"Well, I did kill James to protect her. And now, when the rest of my family has moved on, I'm still here with her." Davina shrugged. "It's a stretch, but not that much of one. Especially when you're eager to get revenge and don't want to wait decades or even centuries for your enemy to find their happiness, just so you can take it away."

Jacob seemed less concerned about a revenge-driven vampire out to kill Bella, and more relieved to hear that Bella wasn't mated to Davina; but he didn't dwell on it. In fact, he sent for Sam, and they all spent the rest of the day devising a protection detail for Bella and Charlie.


	7. Unexpected Confessions

Chapter 7: Unexpected Confessions

For the next two weeks it was just Bella and Davina. Jacob was busy with the rest of the pack, trying to hunt down Victoria; and Charlie was busy hunting the wolves with other humans. On occasion, Jacob would report in with Davina, and Charlie would come home to sleep, eat, or shower; but for the most part, it was just Bella and Davina.

Davina kept the promise she made to Bella back in the meadow, and opened herself up to her. There were still some things she wasn't comfortable discussing, but for the most part she told Bella anything she wanted to know.

The two weeks went by in a blur for Bella and Davina. They were so immersed in one another, the only thing they seemed to notice was the way they were beginning to feel for each other. Davina ignored her feelings, convinced that they couldn't be real; while Bella knew they were. She planned to tell Davina, there was just one thing she needed to do first.

If she was going to open her heart to Davina and move on with her life, she first needed to let go of her past – to let go of Edward. To say goodbye once and for all. The only issue was she didn't know how to contact him or find him. Even Davina never seemed to speak to him directly. She only received updates on his whereabouts, whenever she occasionally spoke to Carlisle. This left Bella with one option: her hallucinations.

She knew they weren't real, but it was the closest she could get. And if seeing him or hearing his voice in her head could help her, then doing the same now should be enough to allow her to let go and move on. She just needed to find a way to get away from Davina and the wolves to do it. But how?

It took several days of suggesting it, before anyone would go for it, but Bella came up with the idea that they would all have better luck of catching Victoria, if the wolves would let Davina go hunting with them. Maybe she could slow Victoria down enough for them to catch her, if she could get close enough to use her aversion field to confuse Victoria.

But it was risky. It was one thing for the humans to see the large wolves running around, but another thing entirely to see Davina Cullen. Or worse, what if leaving Bella alone to team up with the wolves resulted in Bella's death? Bella had an argument for that too. She could stay on the reservation, somewhere.

Davina still didn't like this, nor did Jacob. It left Bella too open for Victoria to attack. But Bella insisted. Even if the wolves refused to admit that they could use Davina's help in catching Victoria, they should at least admit that, with all their attentions on catching the vampire, Davina could help watch out for Charlie. Charlie, who was out in the woods every day, hunting the wolves.

No one liked it, but they eventually gave in. So, the next day, Davina joined the wolves in the forest, while Bella stayed on the reservation.

* * *

The waves picked up as Bella paced, beginning to crash against the rocks, but there was still no wind. Everything swirled around her, but it was perfectly still where she stood. The air had a faint electric charge—she could feel the static in her hair.

Farther out, the waves were angrier than they were along the shore. They were battering against the line of the cliffs, spraying big white clouds of sea foam into the sky. There was still no movement in the air, though the clouds roiled more quickly now. It was eerie looking—like the clouds were moving by their own will.

The cliffs were a black knife edge against the livid sky. Staring at them, Bella remembered the day Jacob had told her about Sam and his "gang." She thought of the boys—the werewolves—throwing themselves into the empty air. The image of the falling, spiraling figures was still vivid in her mind. She imagined the utter freedom of the fall... She imagined the way Edward's voice would have sounded in her head…

Bella knew her way to the lane that passed closest to the cliffs, but she still had to hunt for the little path that would take her out to the ledge. As she followed it, she looked for turns or forks, knowing that Jacob had planned to take her off the lower outcropping rather than the top, but the path wound in a thin single line toward the brink with no options. She didn't have time to find another way down—the storm was moving in quickly now. The wind was finally beginning to touch her, the clouds pressing closer to the ground. Just as she reached the place where the dirt path fanned out into the stone precipice, the first drops broke through and splattered on her face.

Maybe it was better this way – jumping from the top. With her feelings for Davina growing so strongly, they were beginning to drown out what she felt for Edward. Maybe the safety of the lower ledge wouldn't be enough to hear him, and then what would be the point? She'd have done all this for nothing. Granted, this was the stupidest, most reckless thing Bella had done yet; but this was her best chance at seeing Edward one last time.

The ocean sounded very far away, somehow farther than before. Bella grimaced when she thought of the probable temperature of the water. But she wasn't going to let that stop her.

The wind blew stronger now, whipping the rain into eddies around her. She stepped out to the edge, keeping her eyes on the empty space in front of her. Bella drew in a deep breath and held it ... waiting.

"Don't do this," came Edward's voice.

Bella breathed a sigh of relief. It'd worked. "I need you to hear me," she told him. "I need you to know that I love you. And I will always love you."

"Then don't do this," the voice pleaded. "Please." The voice was fading to just a whisper, and she wasn't finished yet.

Bella removed her jacket, shoes, and jewelry.

"Bella."

"I need you to know that…I can let you go, now. I'm ready to move on." Bella stepped closer to the ledge.

"Bella don't!" the voice was angry, now.

"Goodbye, Edward." Bella flung herself off the edge of the cliff. The wind resisted, trying vainly to fight the unconquerable gravity, pushing against her as she sliced through the surface of the water. It was icy, colder than she'd feared, and yet the chill only added to the high.

Bella was proud of herself as she plunged deeper into the freezing black water. There hadn't been one moment of terror—just pure adrenaline. That was when the current caught her.

She'd been so preoccupied by the size of the cliffs, by the obvious danger of their high, sheer faces, that she hadn't worried at all about the dark water waiting. She never dreamed that the true menace was lurking far below, under the heaving surf.

Bella fought to keep her breath in, to keep her lips locked around her last store of oxygen. The cold of the water was numbing her arms and legs. But she continued to force her arms to continue reaching, her legs to kick harder for the surface.

The current won at that moment, shoving Bella abruptly against something hard, a rock invisible in the gloom. It hit her solidly against the back of the head, and the breath whooshed out of her lungs, escaping in a thick cloud of silver bubbles.

A moment later, her head broke the surface – though she'd been sure she was sinking.

"Breathe!" Jacob ordered. "Breathe, Bella! C'mon!" Jacob begged.

Bella began coughing up the black, icy water.

"Bella?" Jacob asked, his voice was still tense. "Bella, can you hear me?"

Bella opened her eyes, and looked around. "Jake?"

Jacob breathed a sigh of relief and pulled her in for a hug. "What the hell were you thinking?"

"I just wanted to see something," Bella answered vaguely. "W-Where's Davina?"

"Finishing up a perimeter check with some of the guys."

"Get her home!" Sam shouted from further down the beach. "I'm going to go help out at Harry's place!"

"What happened at Harry's?" Bella asked.

"Harry Clearwater had a heart attack," he replied. "Charlie and my dad are over at his place with his family."

"Is he okay?"

Jacob's face turned grim. "He's gone."

Jacob picked Bella up, and drove her home. Not because Sam had told him to, but because Bella wasn't like them, and was probably freezing. She was also likely exhausted from swimming against that strong current, and needed some rest. What a stupid and reckless thing to do…

* * *

When Davina had finally been told about Bella's cliff diving incident, she ran for the Swan residence at full speed. By the time she arrived, Jacob had already looked Bella over for injury, gotten her changed into dry clothes, and laid her to bed to rest and get warm. He tore himself away from Bella to meet Davina downstairs.

"How is she?" Davina asked.

"She'll be fine. No thanks to you," he replied snarkily.

Davina was confused. Alice had the visions, not her. How was she supposed to know that Bella was going to do what she did? She didn't have to wonder for long, though.

"If it weren't for you, the redhead wouldn't even be hunting Bella," he went on. " ** _You_** killed her mate – her fight is with you. But because you came back, she thinks Bella's something special to you, that she can take away."

"If I hadn't killed her mate, he'd have hunted Bella to the ends of the earth, and enjoyed every second of it," said Davina. "And I'm glad I came back, because she was a damn mess."

"She was fine, before you came back and ruined everything," Jacob snapped. "There were no vampires hunting her, the most dangerous thing she ever did was ride a motorcycle, and I was making her happy again. I still could." Jacob inched closer to Davina to drive the words home several times harder. "I can give her a normal, human life, if you just leave."

His words stung Davina.

"Jake, enough!" Bella had tried to raise her voice, but all the salt water had left her voice pretty scratchy and low. She descended the stairs as she spoke. "Davina is welcome to stay as long as she likes, and you have no right to ask her to leave on my behalf. I want her here."

Jacob started to argue, but Bella cut him off. "You should go, Jake."

Jacob reluctantly stormed off into the night. Once he was for sure gone, Bella began to apologize to Davina for what he'd said – she wanted Davina to know that she didn't feel that way.

"Why did you go cliff diving alone?" Davina interrupted. She was angry that Bella had been so stupid – for worrying her, like she had. "I thought we were past all of that, Bella."

"We were – **_are_**. I just…needed to see him one last time," she explained. "To say goodbye, so I can finally move on."

Davina flinched. Wrongfully assuming that she meant with Jacob, Davina was hurt. "So Jacob was right. He makes you happy."

"No. I mean, yes, but…" Bella shook her head and smiled nervously. This wasn't exactly how she'd imagined this going. "Jacob is my friend – my best friend – and I love him. But he's just a friend."

Davina felt relieved to hear this, yet still confused. You'd only need to say goodbye to a past love, if you already had another to replace them. And if that wasn't Jacob, then who?

"Davina, you came back for me. You reminded me of what it felt like to be happy. You chased away the nightmares, and made me feel whole again." Bella moved closer to her with every word. "I don't know how, but you got me to fall for you, Davina Ward. Even if you don't feel the same, you've still helped me get over losing Edward. But I think you do."

Bella waited for Davina to say something – anything – but she couldn't. The only thing coming to mind was, _"_ _This is impossible. You_ _'_ _re mated to my nephew, not me, therefore your feelings can_ _'_ _t be real._ _"_ But that wasn't something Bella wanted, or needed, to hear right now.

Davina was eternally grateful when she heard her saving grace pulling into the driveway. "Charlie's home," said Davina. "You should get back to bed, before he sees you like this. He's been through enough for one day."

* * *

Davina took a couple of days to think things over. She paced all over that house, trying to figure out how Bella could possibly have feelings for her. Until, one day, Davina realized she had been asking herself the wrong question. The only question Bella needed answered – the only question that mattered, right now – was did she feel the same?

Davina knew the answer instantly, and ran downstairs to Bella. She was thankful to see that Charlie was out, so she and Bella were home alone. This meant she could speak freely, without having to lure Bella away, or worse, wait until they were alone.

Bella was folding some laundry on the couch, when Davina came down the steps. Davina leaned against the doorway, staring at Bella with new eyes. It was like she had never truly appreciated how beautiful Bella was, until now.

Davina smiled to herself. "I was never bitten." Bella gave a light jump at the sudden break of silence. "The story I tell everyone, including my family, is a lie. I was never attacked by a random vampire, and I was never bitten."

Bella furrowed her brow in confusion. "Then how are you...?" She gestured to Davina.

"I was born this way."

Bella's eyebrows immediately shot up in surprise. Born a vampire?

"Viktor found me shortly after I was born. He took me back to his home, and raised me as his own daughter," she explained. "We tried looking into myths and legends about others that might've been like me, but we found nothing concrete. The closest thing we ever heard of was a brief, dark period in our history when, those of our kind that craved a child, tried turning human children into vampires; but it didn't work."

Bella's head was spinning. Davina hadn't spoken more than a handful of words to her for days. And now, here she was, talking about something that had nothing to do with the last thing Bella had said to her. Or did it? Was she going to tell her that she was incapable of love? That didn't seem right. She'd seen how deeply Davina cared far too many times for that to ever be true. So what did this have to do with anything?

"Why are you telling me this?" Bella asked.

"Because your mind is safe, for one thing," said Davina. "I've never been able to tell my family because of the danger it would put them in."

"Danger?"

"If word spread that there could exist a race of vampires capable of blending in with humans, even in the sunnier climates, and they could be bread rather than bitten – meaning no missing humans; then those that seek to create armies could easily bread one, if they are but patient enough to wait for them to grow."

Bella shook her head – she still wasn't following. "But how would telling your family put them in danger? They wouldn't try to build an army, or tell anyone who wanted to."

"Because if someone found out, if someone tried to build such an army, and the Volturi found out? They would not only destroy the army and the one who made it, but any and all vampires who knew of how to do this, to prevent it from happening again," she replied. "As I said, your mind is safe, and I trust you. Trusting someone with this secret has always been my greatest fear, because of what could happen to them for knowing it."

Bella nodded. It was great that Davina was still willing to open up to her, but she was still confused as to what this had to do with anything. Why was she telling her this? Was she ever going to say anything about their conversation the other day – if you could even call it a conversation?

It appeared she wasn't, and Bella was growing more and more irritated with Davina, with each passing thought. She picked up the basket of folded clothes, and headed for the stairs to put them away. As she passed Davina in the doorway, she grabbed the basket Bella was carrying, stopping her in her tracks.

Davina stared hard at Bella. "You never asked what my other reason for telling you was."

Bella stood there silently, as she avoided Davina's gaze. It was hard, even agonizing, but looking at Davina after what she had confessed to her the other day, would be harder. Just being this close to her was bad enough.

"I told you, because it's no longer my greatest fear," said Davina. "My greatest fear, now...is losing you."

Bella's eyes shot up to look into Davina's instinctively. "...What?"

"Bella, I don't know how you could seem to be so clearly mated to my nephew, and then fall in love with me, but...I'm not entirely sure that I care."

Bella dropped the basket to the floor, and turned to face Davina fully.

"Bella, I'm sorry it's taken me so long to admit my feelings for you – and I do have feelings for you. It's just, in our world, when someone finds their mate, that's it. They don't fall in love again, like you did; they don't have someone else fall in love with them, because they belong to another. I mean, sure, Viktor and I have a theory that everyone has more than one mate, given our long lives. But to find two at the same time, as you did..." Davina shook her head in confusion. "...it just seems anomalous."

Bella thought for a moment, then argued back, "But I didn't find two mates at the same time. I met Edward, first. I got to know him, and fell in love with him." She took a step closer to Davina. "Then he left, and I got to spend time with you...to fall in love with you."

Bella reached out a nervous hand, and touched it to Davina's cheek. Davina's eyes closed at the cool touch of her hand. Bella moved closer.

"You came back for me," Bella continued. "You stayed with me. You took care of me. You **_loved_** me...Victoria was right."

Davina smiled. "I could kiss you right now."

"…so do it."

Davina looked at Bella for a moment – only a moment – before complying with her wish.

If kisses were the magical things they are in fairytales, then the kiss shared by Davina and Bella could have broken any curse. For the first time in her 300 years, Davina knew what it felt like to love and be loved in return. She knew what it was to have someone know who and what you were, and still love you. She knew what it was to trust that she would still be loved, when Bella eventually learned about the rest of her past. She knew what it felt like to have what everyone else in the Cullen family had already found. And it was wonderful.

For Bella, she had already experienced something similar with Edward, but not the same – no two loves can ever be compared. When Davina returned to Forks, she chased away Bella's nightmares of being alone. But it wasn't until this moment that she lifted all of Bella's fears and worries away. Before Davina, Bella was convinced she'd never be whole again. In Davina, she found her missing piece.

Davina made a face and pulled away, reluctantly.

"I'm sorry," said Bella. "I didn't mean to-"

"It's not you," Davina assured her. She pointed upstairs, where her mobile phone was ringing.

"Oh."

Davina began ascending the stair to answer it. "If that's Viktor, I'm going to kill him…"

Bella bit her bottom lip lightly, and smiled to herself, as she remembered their kiss. She was happy – truly happy. She looked down at the basket of folded clothes. There was no telling how long Davina's phone call would last, and these clothes weren't going to put themselves away.

Bella had just reached the top of the stairs with the basket, when she heard Davina arguing with whomever was on the other end of the call.

"I'm not in denial about it. You know what, fine. I'll prove it to you." Davina walked over towards Bella. "Hey, Bella, did you know you were dead?"

Bella made a funny face. "Uh, no, I'm not."

"You hear that, Alice? Straight from the ghost's mouth."

Bella gave a mild laugh. But why would Alice think she was dead?

"He what?!" Davina's tone was more concerned than upset. That made Bella worry, too. What was going on? "No. No, tell everyone to stay as far away from Italy as possible. If any of you try to stop him, he'll just do something to get you all killed. Bella and I will handle this. Yeah, keep me posted."

Davina had barely lowered the phone from her ear, before Bella began asking what was happening.

"Alice had a vision of your little cliff diving venture." Davina flitted in and out, and around the room, packing their bags as she spoke. "She assumed you were dead, so she told the others. Carlisle flew down to Rio to tell Edward, who vanished soon after. Alice saw him going to Italy to see the Volturi. The Volturi are-"

"I know who they are," said Bella. "Edward told me."

If you had told her 3 months ago that the thought of her being dead made Edward want to kill himself, she'd have told you that it was only out of some sort of guilt. That he'd found some way of taking the blame for whatever accident claimed her life, and couldn't live with it.

But with the return of Davina, Bella had been informed of Edward's true reason for leaving her. He had lied about not loving her, because it would make her less likely to argue and try to follow him. Edward truly loved Bella, and only wished to keep her safe from himself and his kind. His actions now were because he couldn't bear to live in a world without her in it.

"What do we do?" Bella asked.

"Show him that you're still alive," said Davina. "It's the only thing he'll believe."

Bella nodded. "I'll leave a note for Charlie."

"I'll grab a car from my family's house, while you do that. I'll be back for you before you know it."

Davina grabbed both of their bags and dropped them off downstairs, before disappearing. Bella got to work on her note for Charlie. She hated to just pick up and leave like this, especially in the wake of losing a good friend; but time was of the essence. They had to go now, or Edward would die.


	8. Saving Edward

Chapter 8: Saving Edward

The two girls had to run for their connection flight; but that was a good thing, because it meant they didn't have to sit around and wait – waiting was the worst. As soon as they were up in the air, Bella lifted the window shade to stare out into the flat black that was no better than the window shade itself. Davina sat cross-legged in her seat next to Bella, but her foot was shaking nervously. Somehow, she seemed to be more nervous than she had been on the previous flight.

Bella took Davina's hand in hers. "It'll be alright. We'll find Edward, show him I'm alive, and-"

"I know," said Davina. "Even if I can't control my thoughts, if I'm close enough for him to hear me, then it means I'm close enough to confuse him."

"Then why do you seem more anxious now than you were when we left Forks?"

Davina looked around at the other passengers – they were all quickly falling asleep. She turned back to Bella and gave a deep sigh. "Because I'm afraid the Volturi won't let me go…" She looked up into Bella's eyes. "…this time…"

Bella's first question was going to be 'why wouldn't they let you go?', but with the added last her question quickly changed to, "What do you mean 'this time'?"

"Bella, I've done some pretty bad things in my 300 years – every vampire does, sooner or later – but I have never once hated what I am. I don't agree with my brother and nephew on their view of us being soulless demons, bound for hell." Her eyes were hard, emphasizing every last word. Then they softened and fell to the floor. "Still, I have regrets, like everyone else."

Bella remained quiet, watching her very closely. What could be plaguing her so badly all of a sudden?

"When I parted company with Viktor the first time, I decided to seek out the Volturi. Like any child, I wanted to follow in my father's footsteps and serve them as he had," she began. "So for the next hundred and twenty-ish years, I served them, and happily. It provided me with new challenges, lots of travel, a chance to see the world evolve and develop without having to be stuck in the same place for too long, the opportunity to learn from Aro and Marcus…It was wonderful."

"If it was so wonderful, then why did you leave?" Bella wondered aloud.

"Because of Carlisle," Davina answered simply. "In the few decades that Carlisle stayed with us, we grew close. Seeing the goodness and light in him reminded me of how I used to be, before I had gone to Italy. I went there seeking a challenge, the chance to learn and grow, and a way to make my father proud; and in return I found the life was slowly being sucked out of me. I finally understood why Viktor had left them, a man that had always loved a good fight – they were steadily eating away at his soul, too."

Bella mulled this information over in her head. At least now she knew the full story of how Davina and Carlisle met, why Davina was in Voltera. And though she still felt the Volturi were more on the monster side of vampire, there was no doubt in her mind that Davina was still a good person. Her opinion of the red-haired vampire had not lessened. If anything, she seemed to care for her more, knowing that she trusted her enough with something that she had not even shared with the rest of her family – aside from the one member of it who had actually lived it.

"What are you thinking?" Davina asked, watching the proverbial gears turn. It wasn't a demand, like most of the times Edward had asked her what she was thinking, merely an inquiry.

"I'm thinking it's not something you should be so ashamed of that you hide it from your family," Bella answered honestly. "I'm sure they made you do horrible things, things that you regret, but you can't go through life hiding your past from those closest to you. Cause it'll eventually catch up to you."

One corner of Davina's mouth turned upwards into a smile. She was happy to hear that Bella wasn't judging her for her decision to serve the Volturi.

"And I think that if they want you to stay…" She grabbed stared hard into Davina's eyes. "…they're gonna have to go through me, and Viktor, and everyone else who loves you, first."

The other half of Davina's mouth upturned to form a full smile. She knew there wasn't much, or anything, that Bella could do to stop the Volturi from keeping her there if they wanted; but hearing her say what she had still felt nice.

"Get some sleep, Bella. You'll need your energy tomorrow."

Bella maintained her grip on Davina's hand, as she laid her head down on Davina's shoulder and closed her eyes. Davina rested her head on Bella's and closed her eyes, too.

"Davina?"

"Hmm?"

"Why'd they let you leave with Carlisle the first time?" Bella hadn't forgotten what Edward had told her about how they had all assumed Davina and Carlisle were mated, but surely there had to be more reason than that for them to let her go.

"Marcus can see relationships – bonds forming between two people – sometimes even before they realize it themselves," she explained. "He saw that Carlisle and I had grown close, maybe even mates. I can only assume that they thought I might one day return with Carlisle at my side. Convert him, somehow."

"Or maybe they thought you could convince Viktor to come back," Bella suggested.

"Hmpf! Not likely." Davina's eyes shot open as a realization hit her. "Marcus…that's it!" she whispered excitedly.

Bella sat back up to look at her, "What's it?"

"Every year on March 19th, there's a festival held in honor of Marcus – The St. Marcus Day Festival."

"But that's tomorrow," Bella argued. "How are we going to find him in time to stop him, in the middle of a festival?"

"Well, hopefully, Alice will have more news for us when we land. But if she doesn't, then we still have an ace up our sleeve."

"What ace?"

"Viktor," Davina replied simply. "He attends the festival every year. The only time he ever missed it was when I was still too young to be seen by the Volturi."

Bella was still confused. "But wouldn't Edward recognize him, or hear his thoughts, or something, and just act faster? I mean, isn't that why you told the rest of your family to stay away?"

Davina shook her head. "Viktor's thoughts are far more controlled than mine could ever hope to be – he's had centuries more than I have to practice. And even if Edward were staring him in the face, hearing him think 'Isn't that Edward – Davina's nephew?' it would do him no benefit."

"Why not?"

"Because they've never met before. Edward has no idea what Viktor looks like."

Bella's confusion was making her grow more frustrated. "How is that better? If Viktor doesn't even know who he is, then why would he stop him?"

"Do you remember when I first came back, and I had Viktor with me?"

Bella nodded.

"Viktor was in our house, he saw pictures of Edward. If he sees him there, he'll stop him," Davina assured her.

"What if he doesn't see him?"

"It's not that large of a city," said Davina. "Besides, they both have to stick to the shadows to avoid the sun. There are only so many shaded areas at any given time of day; and with the festival, Viktor has a reason to walk around wearing a big, red cloak to shield him from the light. He'll see him."

Bella nodded. She'd have felt better if there were a way to get word to Viktor; but Davina had said he didn't do technology, and that meant no phones.

"Try to get some sleep, Bella," said Davina. "I have a feeling tomorrow is going to be a long day."

Bella laid her head down on Davina's shoulder again, and closed her eyes. All she could do – all either of them could do – was hope that Viktor would stop Edward; or at least delay him long enough for them to catch up.

* * *

They began the steep climb, and the road grew congested. As they wound higher, the cars became too close together for Davina to weave insanely between them anymore. They slowed to a crawl behind a little tan Peugeot.

The cars continued to edge forward, one car length at a time. The sun beamed down brilliantly, seeming already overhead. The cars crept one by one toward the city. Closer to the city, cars were parked by the side of the road with people getting out to walk the rest of the way. The parking lot outside the city wall was filled with cars, crowds of people walking through the gates. No one was being allowed to drive through.

"Bella." Davina spoke quickly in a fierce, low voice. "I'm not entirely sure what the guard here will decide. If this doesn't work, we're going to have to run. If we get separated, just keep asking for the Palazzo dei Priori, and running in the direction they tell you. Don't get lost."

"Palazzo dei Priori, Palazzo dei Priori," Bella repeated the name over and over again, trying to get it down.

"Or 'the clock tower,' if they speak English."

Bella nodded. "Palazzo dei Priori."

"Alice said Edward will be under the clock tower, to the north of the square. There's a narrow alleyway on the right, and he'll be in the shadow there. You have to get his attention before he can move into the sun."

Bella nodded furiously.

They were near the front of the line, now. A man in a navy blue uniform was directing the flow of traffic, turning the cars away from the full lot. They U-turned and headed back to find a place beside the road. Then it was Davina's turn.

The uniformed man motioned lazily, not paying attention. Davina accelerated, edging around him and heading for the gate. He shouted something at them, but held his ground, waving frantically to keep the next car from following their bad example.

The man at the gate wore a matching uniform. As they approached him, the throngs of tourists passed, crowding the sidewalks, staring curiously at the pushy, flashy Porsche. The guard stepped into the middle of the street. Davina angled the car carefully before she came to a full stop. She swiftly reached behind the seat and grabbed something from her bag.

The guard came around the car with an irritated expression, and tapped on her window angrily. He had to do a double take when he saw the face red head's face.

"I'm sorry, only tour buses allowed in the city today, miss," he said in English, with a heavy accent. He was apologetic, now, as if he wished he had better news for the strikingly beautiful woman.

"It's a private tour," Davina said, flashing an alluring smile. She reached her hand out cf the window, into the sunlight. She took his hand, still raised from tapping her window, and pulled it into the car. She put something into his palm, and folded his fingers around it.

His face was dazed as he retrieved his hand and stared at the thick roll of money he now held. The outside bill was a thousand dollar bill.

"Is this a joke?" he mumbled.

Davina's smile was blinding. "Only if you think it's funny."

He looked at her, his eyes staring wide. Bella glanced nervously at the clock on the dash. If Edward stuck to his plan, they had only five minutes left.

"I'm in a wee bit of a hurry," Davina hinted, still smiling.

The guard blinked twice, and then shoved the money inside his vest. He took a step away from the window and waved them on. None of the passing people seemed to notice the quiet exchange. Davina drove into the city, and the two girls both sighed in relief.

The street was very narrow, cobbled with the same color stones as the faded cinnamon brown buildings that darkened the street with their shade. It had the feel of an alleyway. Red flags decorated the walls, spaced only a few yards apart, flapping in the wind that whistled through the narrow lane. It was crowded, and the foot traffic slowed their progress.

"Just a little farther," Davina encouraged. Bella was gripping the door handle, ready to throw herself into the street as soon as Davina spoke the word.

She drove in quick spurts and sudden stops, and the people in the crowd shook their fists and said angry words that Bella was glad she couldn't understand. Davina turned onto a little path that couldn't have been meant for cars; shocked people had to squeeze into doorways as they scraped by. There was another street at the end. The buildings were taller there; they leaned together overhead so that no sunlight touched the pavement—the thrashing red flags on either side nearly met. The crowd was thicker here than anywhere else. Davina stopped the car. Bella had the door open before they were at a standstill.

She pointed to where the street widened into a patch of bright openness. "There—we're at the southern end of the square. We need to run straight across, to the right of the clock tower."

They hadn't been running long, before the crowd became too thick for them to stay together. Bella lost her grip on Davina. She turned around to look for a way back to her, but Davina gestured for her to carry on. "Forget about me! You have two minutes! Go, Bella, go!" she shouted.

Bella turned back forward and did exactly as Davina had said. She shoved a heavy woman out of her way and ran flat out, head down, paying little attention to anything but the uneven stones beneath her feet.

Coming out of the dark lane, she was blinded by the brilliant sunlight beating down into the principal plaza. The wind whooshed into her, flinging her hair into her eyes and blinding her further. It was no wonder that she didn't see the wall of flesh until she'd smacked into it.

There was no pathway, no crevice between the close pressed bodies. Bella pushed against them furiously, fighting the hands that shoved back. She heard exclamations of irritation and even pain as she battled her way through, but none were in a language she understood. The faces were a blur of anger and surprise, surrounded by the ever-present red. A blond woman scowled at her, and the red scarf coiled around her neck looked like a gruesome wound. A child, lifted on a man's shoulders to see over the crowd, grinned down at her, his lips distended over a set of plastic vampire fangs.

The throng jostled around her, spinning her in the wrong direction. She tried to fight the crowd and get back on course, but it was useless. She was stupid and slow and human, and they were all going to die because of it.

Suddenly, an arm wrapped itself around her waist, and began pulling her along. It was Davina. She'd made her way through the crowd to Bella.

"What about Edward?" Bella asked. She had told Bella not to worry about her, so why had she chosen to save her from the crowd instead of getting to Edward?

Davina used her free arm to move people out of their way – which was far more effective with her supernatural strength. "He's fine. Viktor has him."

* * *

Viktor tossed Edward into the clock tower's base, and closed the door behind them. Edward stood there awaiting his punishment. He hadn't technically stepped into the sunlight, yet, but he guessed he had proven his resolve to die.

"I'm ready." Edward braced himself and closed his eyes.

Viktor picked up Edward's shirt and threw it at him. "Put your shirt back on."

Edward caught the shirt, but stared at Viktor in confusion. He tuned into the stranger's thoughts and found something he had never expected. "You're Davina's father. Viktor."

"You know, it's not polite to read other people's thoughts. They're meant to be private." Viktor had considered confusing him more with random thoughts that had no correlation to one another whatsoever; but given what Edward had just tried to do, a more serious and straightforward discussion was needed. "Of course, it's even more impolite to try and get others killed along with yourself."

Edward put his shirt back on and sighed in agitation. "I didn't even know you were here."

"Bet you didn't know Davina and your bloodsinger were here, either," said Viktor.

Edward's face fell. "Bella isn't here…she's dead."

Viktor scoffed. "She looked pretty alive to me. A bit panicked, but very much alive."

"You're lying," Edward snapped. "Davina sent you to stop me. Didn't she?"

Viktor opened his mouth to deny any such scheme, but the two girls bursting through the doors cut him off. Instead, he merely gestured to the ladies, and gave Edward a look of _"I told you."_

Edward beamed. "You're here." He swept Bella up in his arms.

"I'm here," she confirmed.

"You're alive!"

Davina stood back with her father, as she tried her best to control her thoughts. Edward didn't need to learn about her and Bella through a random jealous thought, or even thoughts of fear about how he would react once he found out. Or fear of Bella deciding she wanted Edward again, now that they had been reunited.

Bella looked up into Edward's eyes. They'd gone dark, as though he hadn't eaten in a while. "I just needed to make you see me once. You had to know that I was alive." Her eyes fell to avoid his gaze. "My cliff diving was recreational. I wasn't trying to…to kill myself."

"Bella, I'm so sorry." He reached to hold her face in his hand. "That day in the woods, I lied. I left to protect you, and when I heard that you were…that you'd died, I couldn't bear to live in a world where you didn't exist."

Bella removed his hand from her face. "I know. But I'm alive, so you don't have to-"

Suddenly there were two other vampires standing in the corridor with them. One was big and brawny, like Emmett; the other was average with sandy blond hair. Bella looked at their eyes – they were a deep red.

Edward positioned Bella behind him slightly. "I won't be needing your services after all, gentlemen."

"Aro wants to speak with you again," said the big one.

"Oh, come on, no rules were broken, Felix," said Viktor.

"Nonetheless, we should take this conversation to a more appropriate venue," said the other one.

"Very well," said Viktor. "Bella, why don't you go enjoy the rest of the festival?"

"The girl comes with us," said Felix.

"No. You can go to hell," Edward replied.

"That's enough!" Davina scolded. She shot a brief look at her nephew, then marched right up to the blond vampire. "Lead the way, Demetri."

Her false bravery fooled the others, but Bella knew better. So while Davina followed Demetri, Bella followed Davina. She held her hand as they walked, which confused Edward immensely. He remembered a time when Bella clung to him like that. What had happened in his absence?

* * *

The elevator ride was short; the group stepped out into what looked like a posh office reception area. The wallswere paneled in wood, the floors were solid marble. There were no windows, but large,brightly lit paintings of the Tuscan countryside hung everywhere as replacements. Pale leather coucheswere arranged in cozy groupings, and the glossy tables held crystal vases full of vibrantly coloredbouquets.

In the middle of the room was a high, polished mahogany counter. Thewoman behind it was tall, with dark skin and green eyes. She would have been very pretty in any othercompany—but not here. Because she was every bit as human as Bella was. Bella couldn't comprehend what thishuman woman was doing here, totally at ease, surrounded by vampires.

She smiled politely in welcome. "Good afternoon," she said. There was no surprise in her face asshe glanced at the company.

Bella leaned in closer to Davina, and whispered. "Does she know? What you all are?"

"Mhmm," Davina replied.

"Then why would…" A lightbulb came on for Bella, just as she was beginning to ask. "She wants to be."

"And so she will be," said Demetri.

"Or desert," Felix added. As he passed the desk, he winked at the woman, and she giggled.

The group continued down a long, dark corridor, until finally reaching a set of large, wooden doors. Dmitri pushed them open effortlessly and lead them into a large, round chamber. Bella was awestruck. Two stories up, long window slits threw thin rectangles of bright sunlight onto the marble floor below. There were no artificial lights. The only furniture in the room were three massive wooden chairs, like thrones, that were placed a few levels up from the main floor.

Aside from Bella's companions, there were five new vampires in the room. Bell recognized three of them from the painting in Carlisle's office –they were completely unchanged by the last three hundred years since it was painted. They sat on or stood near the thrones in the center of the chamber. Davina leaned towards Bella and whispered, "That's Caius, Marcus, and Aro." She pointed to each of them as she said their names. Davina then gestured to the other two vampires off to the right. "Jane and Alec. Their twins."

All of the Vultori seemed to share the same crimson each of them seemed to notice Bella's presence within the chamber, for each of them turned to see if it was their meal that had arrived, or something else.

A man with long, black hair rose to his feet in excitement. "What a happy surprise!" He glided towards them in such a way that would have put Alice's dancelike movements to shame. "Bella is alive afterall."

Bella could sense Davina's tension grow the closer he got to them – this man made her uncomfortable.

"You see, Edward?" Aro smiled at Edward like a fond but scolding grandfather. "What did I tell you? Aren't you glad that I didn't give you what you wanted yesterday?"

"Yes, Aro, I am," Edward agreed. He glanced at Bella still clinging to Davina. It was so strange.

"I love a happy ending," Aro sighed. "They are so rare." Aro followed his gaze. He seemed to finally take notice of Davina and Viktor's presence, and his smile brightened. "Viktor and Davina! It's been far too long. I want to know everything you've been up to, just as soon as I hear how this misunderstanding could have happened."

Aro extended a hand to Davina. He hadn't missed how tightly Bella seemed to cling to her rather than her supposed mate Edward. If anyone were to have the answers he sought, it was Davina. "Let us have the story."

Bella was utterly confused. Why should holding his hand tell him anything?

Davina did her best to compose herself internally, and keep her thoughts controlled, before taking Aro's hand. She was thankful for the savior that was Marcus.

Marcus had appeared at Aro's side and touched his palm raised a brow curiously at Bella and Davina, as Marcus returned to his seat. "How interesting?"

Edward read Aro's thoughts, and became rigid. Bella was the only one who had no idea what was happening.

"Aro can read minds with his touch," Davina explained to her. "And Marcus can see relationships."

Bella looked up at Edward sympathetically. If Marcus showed Aro what she thought he had, and Edward saw it in Aro's mind…this was not how she intended for him to find out.

"How very interesting?" Aro repeated to himself. He extended his hand further to Davina. It was clear he still wished to see the story of how all of them ended up here. Davina was also certain he'd be interested in seeing how Bella came to be on her arm instead of Edward's.

Davina took his hand, careful to keep her mind under control. She showed him the events that lead the Cullens to leave Forks. She showed him her travels with Viktor, and how she kept worrying about Bella after they'd left. How she'd returned and the two fell in love. And how Bella had gone cliff diving for fun, and that was what Alice had seen in her vision and assumed the worst.

What she didn't show him were the wolves or her confession to Bella about what she was.

Aro's smile grew again. "Fascinating."

Edward's body language was subtle. But to anyone who knew him, it was clear that he had witnessed the same visions that Aro had seen in Davina's mind – she could only control her thoughts for one telepath at a time.

Aro eyed Bella with bright interest. "Fascinating that you are the one exception to Edward's impressive talent – so very interesting that such a thing should occur! I am curious, since our talents are similar in many ways, if you would be so kind as to allow me to try – to see if you are an exception to me as well," he asked eagerly, lifting one hand.

Bella's eyes flashed to Davina in terror. Despite Aro's overt politeness, she didn't believe she really had much of a choice. Davina gave her a soft smile, and nodded in encouragement.

Bella raised her hand slowly in front of her. Aro reached out as if to shake her hand, and pressed his cold skin against hers. His face altered as they all watched. The confidence wavered and became first doubt, then incredulity before he calmed it to a friendly mask.

"So very interesting," he said as he released Bella's hand and drifted back. "A first."

Arowas quiet for a moment, his eyes flickering between the three of Bella watched him, she finally realized the source of his confusion. Davina had told her that her thoughts were safe. She hadn't been referring to Edward's ability to read her mind, she had meant Aro's ability. It was why she seemed unbothered by his desire to try reading her thoughts.

Aro shook his head abruptly. "I wonder if she is immune to all our talents…Jane, dear?"

"No!" Edward snarled, launching himself at the little girl.

"Don't!" Davina tried to warn her nephew. But it did no good.

Before anyone could react or even tense up, Edward was on the ground writhing in sounds escaped Edward's lips as he cringed against the marble floor. Jane was smiling at Edward now.

"Stop!" Bella shrieked. She jumped forward to put herself between them, but Davina threw her arms around Bella to stop her. "Just stop hurting him! Please!"

"Jane, " Aro recalled her in a tranquil voice.

She looked up quickly, her smile disappearing, and Edward lay sill. "Master?"

Aro inclined his head toward Bella, and Jane's smile shifted in her direction. Bella didn't meet her gaze. She was more concerned with Edward who was still lying on the ground, motionless.

"He's fine," Davina whispered to her.

The rest of the room, however, stared back and forth between Bella and Jane in fascination. Jane's smiled vanished into a glare. Her jaw clenched with the intensity of her focus. But Bella wasn't in pain.

Jane didn't stop trying until Aro clapped with amusement as he laughed. "Ha, ha! Ha! Remarkable! She confounds us all."Aro eyed Bella with such fascination. "So what do we do with you now?"

"You already know what you're going to do, Aro," Marcus grumbled.

"She knows too much," Caius added. "She's a liability."

"Hmm. That's true," Aro agreed, reluctantly. "Felix?"

Mere seconds later, Bella jumped as things around the room began exploding. Her head whipped around to see what was happening, but all she ever saw were blurs whooshing around the room. She tried looking to Davina for a clue as to what was happening, but Davina wasn't holding her anymore. That's when the cold shiver ran down her spine and she realized what was happening: Davina was fighting Felix to protect her.

Bella became panicky and tried her hardest to keep up with them, but her human eyes just couldn't do it. Davina had triumphed over James last spring, but she was no match for someone like Felix. She was going to get herself killed.

In a flash, Viktor stepped in to protect his daughter. He sent the brawny vampire flying to the other side of the room, and smirked. "Come on, Felix. Do you really think you can beat me? I trained you."

Felix snarled in frustration as he picked himself up off the ground.

Demetri seized the opportunity to go for Bella, but he never made it. Edward recovered from his stint on the ground, and put himself between Bella and Demetri. There were now fights happening on two fronts.

Aro looked around at the warring parties. Edward was no match for a trained fighter, such as Demetri, even with being able to read his thoughts on which moves he'd make next. And though it would be entertaining to watch father and daughter fighting side by side as they destroyed Felix, he still had use of the brute.

Bella turned to follow the blue that she was sure was Davina, only to find Aro's red eyes alarmingly close to her face. She gasped in surprise, which caught Davina and Edward's attentions. Both tried to race to her aid, but only one was able to make it.

Edward was fighting alone, so his opponent was able to overpower him in his moment of distraction, and knock him down. Davina, however, had Viktor to pick up her slack, while she raced to put herself between Aro and Bella.

"No!" she was so closed to the human girl, there was no room for Davina to squeeze herself in, so she grabbed his arm and pleaded with her former master. "Please! Please," she begged. "Don't harm her. I have waited centuries to find her, don't take her from me now."

Aro paused to look down at Davina with curious eyes. He could see in her own eyes, the pain and loneliness she'd endured for centuries, the happiness she had found in Bella, and the pain she would feel if she lost her.

They're bond was a strong one – stronger than most. Aro glanced at Bella. Perhaps this girl would provide him with the key he'd been looking for? Taking her away from Edward would tear apart the Cullen family – at the very least, drive Davina back to Viktor. Perhaps then, he could convince the small clan join them.

Viktor's talents spoke for themselves, as did his past with the Vultori. And Davina's gift of confusion had certainly come in handy during her time with them. She was also the only vampire alive to have properly studied under Viktor. Though he had trained many of the Vultori guard, Davina was by far. The most skilled and fully trained in his many techniques.

As for Bella, her unique ability would make for a truly intriguing immortal. One that Aro would love to have at his side. He would love to have all three of them. And if they were to be apart from the Cullen clan, and be a clan of their own, that made them an easier target to recruit. A notion that greatly appealed to Aro. But it all depended on someone actually turning Bella into a vampire.

"This is a sadness," Aro sighed. His crimson eyes fixed on Bella. "One who will not turn you, and one who physically cannot."

"I'll do it," Viktor volunteered. He had successfully pinned Felix down ages ago, and held him through his struggling. He released the brute with a look from his master that told him to stand down. "I've long since vowed to turn the mate of my daughter, since she cannot. And from what I've been told, it is Bella's wish to become one of us, so no threats are necessary."

"Yes." Aro looked over at Edward. "I have seen this."

Aro released Bella and took a couple of steps back. Davina let go of Aro's arm to wrap hers around a wave of Aro's hand, Demetri released Edward, and returned to a neutral stance. Viktor took Aro's hand to show him that his word was true. That he had been told Bella wanted to become a vampire, and that whether or not she chose his daughter to be with, he would turn Bella – he had no concerns for what Edward wanted or how angry he would be with him for doing it.

Aro's smile returned, and he looked to Bella. "Your gifts will make for an intriguing immortal, Isabella."

Caius looked bitterly disappointed – a feeling Jane and Felix seemed to share. "Aro," he complained.

"Dear Caius, do not fret. They do not join us today, but we can always hope for the future."

"Then let us be done with this. Heidi will arrive any moment." Marcus stood and forced a smile. "Thank you for your visit."

"Then we are free to go now?" Viktor asked.

"Yes, yes," Aro said pleasantly. "Go and make your preparations."

"I would advise that you follow through on your promise soon," Caius warned. "We do not offer second chances."

Viktor nudged the girls towards the doors, and lingered just long enough to guide Edward out as well, before following suite. They all wanted out of there as quickly as possible.

"Goodbye, my friends," Aro called after them. But no one responded.


End file.
